Yaku Academy
by readthishit
Summary: Villain School AU starring class 1-A. All For One knows his time is coming to an end, but if he has to die, he's taking everything All Might holds dear down with him. It's the dawn of a new era, everything we know and love will burn, but what will rise from the ashes...? A world where Midoiya Izuku is a villain is a frightening one indeed.
1. A Deal With The Devil

**A Deal With The Devil**

**Do you crave money? Power? Do you want to tear this world apart and rebuild it? Or make it suffer for all the pain it has caused you? If you answered yes to any of these, then you've come to the right place.**

Yaku Academy Courses include:

_Villainy 101 _

_A Beginner's Guide To The Black Market _

_Infiltration And Sabotage In The Modern World _

_Disguise And Deception: Tips And Tricks_

_Culinary Arts: Poisons And You _

_The Ins And (Break) Outs Of Prison _

_And International Loopholes For Dummies!_

* * *

Bakugou can't remember the day Midoriya disappeared.

What he _does_ remember are the following days, and that growing feeling of dread. They were young, and the memory had faded a bit over the years, but he remembers enough.

Nobody talked about it, or seemed to notice, or care. It angered Bakugou, because he may just be some quirkless _Deku_, but he was Bakugou's friend, right? Why the hell would he just leave without _telling him?_

When he asked his teachers, they said Midoriya moved. When he asked his parents, they had no idea he'd even left.

Later, after much insisting, his mom said they hear he moved out of the country. He kept asking questions, but no one knew why they'd left so suddenly. They brushed of Bakugou's worry, it wasn't that big of a deal, he was overreacting, and kids just have the craziest imaginations, don't they?

But Bakugou was a stubborn kid. He never stopped looking, and at the same time convinced himself that he didn't actually care what had happened. He just wanted to ask Midoriya _who he thought he was_, just dropping Bakugou like that, not even mentioning that he was going to be moving soon, or to where.

He turned to heroes on the few times he saw them, asking them if they knew what happened to him, asked if they could keep an eye out for him. They never found anything, never got back to him.

When he was young, they would always tell him they'd keep an eye out, or pass the word on to All Might. Bakugou even wrote letters to All Might asking him to help look for him, find out what really happened.

It dragged on and on, his petty, childish reasons grew into genuine concern over the years. Concern for the kid that always followed him around, a mystery he couldn't solve.

The friend he never missed until he was gone.

The great Bakugou Katsuki, the kid everyone _knew_ would become a great hero, _couldn't even find a single person. _

The whole situation was suspicious, he told himself. Something bad _must_ have happened.

As he got older, he saw that there were more holes in the story, more questions than answers, but everyone still brushed him off. Maybe it was a _family_ matter, he shouldn't be prying, it's been _years_ why does he still care?

Bakugou didn't understand why he kept looking either. So much for being a _brilliant kid_.

He kept searching.

One teacher said he moved to Europe, his parents said he moved to America, the neighbors said he moved to Australia. When he was old enough to use the computer without his dad hovering over him, he would scour for hours to try and find something, _anything_.

But there was no trace of him. As far as anyone was concerned, Midoriya and his mom had ceased to exist.

He didn't realize it at the time, but the years of fruitlessly search started to corrode his faith in heroes. Not All Might, _never_ All Might, but Bakugou learned pretty quickly that heroes wouldn't always be there for you. They weren't there for (him) Deku, or his mom, so Bakugou took it on himself. He was going to be the greatest, right? Better than all the heroes that (failed him) he admired so much, and he was going to prove it by bringing Deku back, by _proving_ that something happened to the Midoriyas.

Bakugou kept searching.

* * *

_"…Kacchan."_

Bakugou twisted around so fast his neck cracked. Only one person had ever called him that, but he–_there's_ _no way it's–!_

Before he even realized what's happening, a mop of dark green hair had already disappeared down the alleyway. Bakugou's body _moved_ before he realized it, chasing a ghost, shouting a name he hadn't used in years.

_How the hell is he moving so fast?!_

He could barely keep up, each twist and turn seemed to only widen the gap between them. The temptation to use his quirk was infuriating. There's no way he could outrun Bakugou if he used it, but then a hero would notice, _and he'd lose him again_.

Out of the corner of his eye he'd catch glimpses of hair, of a familiar face. It was _maddening_, how the hell could he be outpacing _Bakugou fucking Katsuki?_

He screamed and shouted but there was no reaction, no words shouted back or even a parting glance, and Bakugou wondered for a split second if he was hallucinating. Did he finally snap, was he chasing after a person that only _looked_ like Deku? It couldn't actually be him, right? Why would he suddenly appear _out of nowhere_, why did call out to him and run, _WHY–?!_

The faces around him blurred, his lungs burned, footsteps pounded in his ears as he darted around people and jumped over whatever junk got in his way. The buildings bled into the sky, and some reasonable voice in the back of his head screamed _what the fuck are you doing?!_

He didn't know. He didn't know where he was going, what he'd do if he caught up to him, what he'd say, what he'd do if he wasn't even chasing after the right guy…!

But he kept running.

Suddenly, the alley opened up, and Bakugou lost sight of him. Abandoned buildings loomed over him in the dying sun, and he was completely _alone_. He turned around, panting, and realized just how far he'd ran. This part of town was not the nicest, certainly not the place for a middle schooler to be.

"_Where the fuck are you?!_" He screamed, voice cracking.

He jumped as the loud _BANG_ of a metal door echoed all around him. He saw a flash of green and whipped his head around and up at one of buildings. He _knows_ he saw him there, darting around in front of the windows.

He took off without hesitating, practically ripped the door off its rusted hinges as he tore into the decrepit building. When he came to the stairs he was forced to slow down. The entire place was falling apart, but the stairs looked especially treacherous. His cursing wasn't enough to drown out the oppressive silence, but he was too full of adrenaline to give a damn. When he made it to the right floor, it was completely barren, dozens of empty rooms greeted him. Most didn't even have doors, and a few had massive holes in the floor.

He smashed his fist into a wall, blowing a small chunk of it off and rattling the entire room.

"What kind of _fucking_ game are you playing, DEKU?!" He snarled at no one, jerking his head as he scanned the area

His palms ignited in frustration, but he wouldn't give up that easily. He immediately started searching, instinct telling him Deku was still here, _somewhere_. The place was huge, but he_ will _find him_._

He made his way to the final floor, and walked past the stairs he assumed led to the roof. That stairwell was completely caved in, so he knew Deku wasn't up there. He'd kept a close watch of the exits, never saw him make his way downstairs. He was _here_. Bakugou was closing in on him, after so many years, he _finally–!_

He paused his search, took a second to calm down. He felt overwhelmed, confused, couldn't even tell if was about to cry or just scream some more. He didn't waste time, gave himself just a few more seconds before he started searching again, slower, more cautiously. The building was in shit condition, but this last floor looked like a warzone. The ceiling had caved in several places, piles of loose concrete reached up to the ceiling, creating a dangerous maze he had to navigate. He could blow away anything that fell, but he had a feeling the explosion would just cause even more bits of ceiling and metal to crumble. Not to mention, he was seriously worried the floor would cave under him if he wasn't careful.

Despite the hazards, he was able to nimbly make his way around the top floor. It helped that most of the rooms up here were blocked off by debris, and even fewer rooms looked safe to enter.

Then came the last room, entrance blocked in a way that hid it well, but he saw his opening. A rusted door was bent in half, propping up a large chunk of wall. It was far too narrow for an adult to squeeze through, but Bakugou knew he'd fit.

For the first time that evening, he hesitated. It looked like a strong breeze could knock over the wall, and it was a massive chunk. He had no doubt it'd crush him, and upon closer inspection, it looked like if the wall fell, most of the ceiling would come down with it. He didn't think an explosion could save himself from that. Still, he had to check the room. He carefully peaked his head inside, heart pounding as he carefully stepped through, and then his stomach dropped to the floor.

Midoriya stood on the far side of the large room, blown-out windows behind him. The setting sun cast the entire place in a warm glow, and hid Midoriya's face in shadows. Bakugou stepped inside, fingers digging into the crumbling wall as he held himself back. His brain had finally caught up with him.

Bakugou's breathing was evening out, but his ears were ringing, and a swarm of emotions kept building. Rage was one of them, one he knew well, but blowing Deku through a wall would be counterproductive, no matter how good it might make him feel in the moment. As if he sensed Bakugou was about do _something_, Midoriya stepped forward, and for a single moment their eyes locked.

Something cold washed over Bakugou, and his rage was snuffed out. There was an unnatural stillness between them.

It shattered the second Midoriya spoke.

"Kacchan…" There was a fire in Midoriya's eyes and confidence in his stance, despite the hesitation in his voice. "We need to talk."

"You piece of _shit_." All of a sudden his rage was back full force, and the wall around his hands shattered. The building rattled a bit, concrete tumbled down throughout the building, from such a weak explosion.

He didn't even notice.

"Careful! You're going to bring this place down on us." There was a bit a fear in Deku's eyes, but it was smothered as quickly as it came.

That was enough to make Bakugou hesitate, and he glanced up and around. Midoriya was right, but Bakugou wasn't planning on aiming at the building itself.

He was always better at fighting instead of talking. Midoriya probably caught onto what Bakugou was thinking, as he spoke as soon as Bakugou took a step forward.

"I have a quirk, Kacchan." _That_ stopped him dead in his tracks.

"…Don't fuck with me." Bakugou was beyond pissed, and more so at himself for even believing that for a split second.

"I'm serious, I was given one! A quirk." Now Midoriya was the one hesitating. Bakugou may have stopped moving, but his mouth hadn't.

"That's not possible, no way in hell!" He ground his teeth together. "Is that all you came to say?! You disappear off the face of the fucking earth, and then come back spouting some bullshit story about a _quirk–!"_

"Why would I lie about something like this?!" Midoriya was getting frustrated. "Look, we're getting off topic–"

"Then what the hell do you want to talk about?! I want answers damn it!"

"I'm getting to that! I didn't bring you here for no reason!" He took a deep breath. "I met someone powerful, so incredibly powerful, and he said he could give me a quirk." Bakugou sneered.

Bakugou looked a little less like he wanted to blow Deku sky high, but the slight tremble in Bakugou's hands gave him away, he was _seething_. Midoriya had to make this quick, before he lost his temper again. He didn't come here to fight.

"He's planning something big, and he needs people. I told him about you, about how incredible and powerful you are. He wants to meet you." Bakugou stares at him like he's grown a second head.

"Tell your _mysterious fucking friend_ he can shove his invite up his ass! I don't want any FUCKING CHARITY!" Bakugou stormed forward.

"It's not–!"

"SHUT _UP–!"_

_Click_.

...

_...What in the actual fuck?_

"Kacchan, don't move."

The chill was back, but this time Bakugou recognized the cold washing over him.

_Fear_.

They were _both_ fucking terrified, but...

Well.

Midoriya wasn't the one looking down the barrel of a gun.

"I just want you to meet him, to hear him out." Midoriya's voice was quiet, and his arm trembled, but his eyes were steel. Bakugou wanted to ask _where the hell he got a gun_, but for once his voice died in his throat.

"I know you'll be interested in what he has to say..." He continued. Midoriya's grip was firm, even as his hand shook, even as he aimed right between Bakugou's eyes. It took a minute for Bakugou to find his voice again, but Midoriya had always been patient.

"...Who?"

Midoriya actually had the _gall_ to look relieved, but he didn't lower the gun.

"He calls himself All For One."

* * *

The sudden teleportation was unpleasant.

When he first coughed up that sludge, he though Deku had done something to him, but then Bakugou had seen Midoriya coughing up that putrid stuff as well. As the coughing subsided and he spit the last of that shit out of his mouth, he took a look around. The room he ended up in looked like some sort of office, aside from the hospital bed near the massive windows. A computer with several monitors ran along the wall next to him, and Bakugou eyed the twisted equipment surrounding it. His eyes followed the massive tubes and wires back to the hospital bed. He noticed for the first time that someone's in the bed, half hidden in shadows cast by the setting sun. Deku may be gone, but Bakugou could put two and two together.

"…Are you supposed to be All For One?" He asked unimpressed. _This_ bedridden guy was supposed to be the all-powerful friend? What the fuck?

"Yes, I am. And you're Bakugou Katsuki, Izuku's old friend." Bakugou found his voice annoying, and creepy. "Tell me, how long has it been since you two have seen each other?"

"Cut the bullshit, I'm not here to make chitchat. He wanted me to meet you so bad, so spit out whatever you want to say." This had been one hell of a day, he just wanted to get this over with.

"You're quite the spitfire, aren't you?" His amusement pissed Bakugou off. "But you're right, you were brought here for a reason. I want to ask you a question first."

"So stop wasting my time and ask the damn question!" He was two seconds from storming out, from wherever this was. His hands sparked.

"What is your ambition?" Bakugou scoffs at him.

"To be the fucking best, of course." His cocky grin falters slightly when All For One chuckles. It's fucking _creepy_.

"Such confidence. It seems Izuku wasn't exaggerating, but tell me, do you really have the determination, the drive? Will you do whatever it takes to accomplish your dream?"

Bakugou eyes him carefully. He knows when he's being tested, feels himself tense under the weight of All For One's stare, not that he can see his eyes, or face. The room is too dark to make out much. The bastard is smirking, he's sure of that, and the air feels heavy now. He isn't hesitating, he's Bakugou fucking Katsuki and he doesn't _hesitate_, but something is telling himself to think carefully before he speaks.

"I will. Whatever it takes." He doesn't need to _shout_ to show this smug asshole how serious he is. "I _will_ prove to the world I'm the greatest, and not even _you_ are going to stop me." He glares at the bedridden man before him, daring him to say something about it. He ignores the chill running down his spine, the cold burn in his veins.

"Good, good. You may be worth my time after all." He sounds almost predatory, but all Bakugou can imagine is Deku, telling him what his "friend" could do for him. Bakugou is obviously worth his damn time!

"Listen, I don't know what Deku told you, but I don't _need_ your help!" His hands spark and crackle. "If this turns out to be a waste of my time, you and Deku can–!"

All For One's amusement never falters, but suddenly Bakugou is frozen on the spot.

His stomach drops to the floor, his blood freezes in his veins, the room starts closing in around him, _crushing_ him. His words die in his throat, he stops breathing, suddenly, _painfully_ aware that this…_pressure_ is coming from him. From All For One.

_How the hell...?_

This feeling isn't even fear, Bakugou just suddenly _**knows**_, deep in his bones, that their difference in power is astronomical. If All For One felt like it, he could kill him. Bakugou would be dead, he swears he can _see it._

That feeling of _absolute helplessness_ squashes any fight he had in him, any snide remark or challenge. His confidence shrivels up and dies.

Bakugou's mind is blank, he couldn't think if he wanted to. All he can do, as he faces All For One, is wait, and watch.

_Helpless._

"You do have a choice here, Bakugou Katsuki." Bakugou flinched. "I certainly don't care what you choose, though Izuku has quite a lot of faith you'll agree with us."

Suddenly he can breathe again, and his eyes widen as the life floods back into him. He's broken out it a cold sweat, he doesn't even try to hide his shaking.

_What the fuck was that…?_

He can't see him, but Bakugou can feel him staring. He doesn't try to speak, just tries to calm his racing heart and pull himself back together. It seems he takes too long, because All For One is speaking again.

"Izuku has been watching you for some time now, incessant on making you a part of this. However, so long as you never speak of this meeting, you're more than welcome to leave. You can continue on with your life like none of this ever happened."

"...Seriously?" Bakugou's voice cracks, but he can't find it in himself to give a shit. Being watched by…? There was no way All For One hadn't been keeping an eye on what Deku was doing, fucking hell, did that mean he was watching his parents too?

"Yes, I'm serious. I am not an unreasonable man. Izuku still considers you to be a close friend, and I swore to him I wouldn't hurt you."

_So long as you don't give me a reason to,_ Bakugou reads through the lines.

"All you have to do is not go to the authorities, or tell another living soul. Now, let me tell you what will happen if you do accept." He holds out an envelope, but Bakugou doesn't want to go anywhere near him.

"If you accept my offer, open this letter. If not, burn it and forget today ever happened. You do have potential, but at the rate you're going you'll never reach your goal. I don't hand things out to people, they must earn it, make it their own. No one can become strong by relying on handouts." He gestures with the envelope. Bakugou slowly makes his way forward and takes it, giving it a once over. He can barely resist the urge to step back. He can see All For One's face in excruciating detail, eyeless and disfigured. That damn smirk is going to haunt him in his dreams.

"I can give you the tools you need to become the strongest. Resources, training, advice, experience. I have contacts and allies everywhere, and all I ask in return is your loyalty. I won't ask anything unreasonable of you, so long as you'll be on my side when the time comes."

"When what comes? What the do you expect me to do?" To say Bakugou is suspicious is an understatement, but he was getting some of his bite back, at least. Still, he was terrified of making him angry.

"You only have to worry about that if you accept. So, Bakugou Katsuki, I suggest you think long and hard about this."

Bakugou wanted nothing more than to get the hell out of here, but with his senses coming back to him, he remembered what Deku said. Bakugou needed answers.

"...Is it true? Did you seriously give Deku a quirk?" _He had to know._

All For One laughs. It's unsettling to see him grin, to watch his face contract and stretch. Bakugou doesn't even try to hide his grimace. All For One would probably see through him anyways.

"Yes, I gave him a quirk that suits him quite well." Bakugou…isn't sure how he feels about that.

_Quirks can be given?_

"…You're shitting me."

"Why would I lie about that?" Bakugou gives him a look that makes All For One chuckle. And Bakugou thought his grin was creepy, _Jesus fuck._

"You should know how lucky you are, Bakugou. Izuku still thinks so highly of you…" All For One leans forward as far as he can from his bed, and this time Bakugou steps back.

He feels the atmosphere shift again.

"When it came time to give him a quirk, he turned down my first offer immediately. The quirk he has now is my second pick. It's a shame, really..."

Morbid curiosity overcomes Bakugou when it becomes clear All For One is waiting for a response. Bakugou knows he isn't going to like the answer, but Midoriya seemed to have a lot of faith in him, so why the hell would he turn down something All For One picked himself...?

"What was it? The first quirk." He bites out. The smirk he receives makes him regret asking, but there's no going back now.

"My power is not just giving quirks, but taking them."

_...Oh_.

"I thought it'd be quite fitting for Izuku..."

_Oh fuck._

"...The helpless, _quirkless_ victim receiving his bully's quirk? Poetic justice, wouldn't you say,_ Kacchan?"_

Bakugou feels like throwing up. He never wanted to hear _Kacchan_ out of his mouth ever again. It felt so wrong, so _vile_…

"Of course, taking such a vital part of a person does come with risks, but it never came to that, lucky for you. But now there's no need to worry about the what-ifs, that time has long passed."

Bakugou's head is spinning. All For One continues to watch him, amused.

Black sludge surrounds Bakugou again, but he's still petrified, and doesn't even fight it this time. Right before he teleports away, he hears the door behind him open, but he isn't around long enough to see Midoriya enter.

"_Quite lucky indeed."_ All For One laughs.

Everything goes black.

* * *

Bakugou blinks in the sudden darkness, sludge long gone. He's back in the abandoned building he cornered Deku in.

...No, this is where _Deku _cornered _him_.

The useless kid he knew is long gone, replaced by some stranger with a quirk. _Deku has a_ _quirk_. Given one by _that man_–

And then the reality of what just happened crashes into him, and it makes his legs give out. His heart is trying to beat out of his chest, he's breathing hard and he can't stop _shaking_. He's feeling every emotion at once yet somehow is still numb to it all, _he's drowning_. There's only one coherent thought in his head, he keeps repeating like a mantra: _What the fuck just happened?_

Bakugou has no idea how long he spent crumpled on the ground, but a voice in the back of his mind says he's having a panic attack, he needs to breathe, calm down. Strong people don't do this, _it's_ _pathetic–_

As he starts to get himself together, he rolls onto his back and pulls out his phone. And speaking of panic, he has a lot of missed texts and calls from his parents.

_Shit. _

He does _not_ struggle to stand back up, absolutely does _not_, and sees that the setting sun is long gone. It's night, and he has no idea where the hell he is or how long it's going to take to get back home. Fuck.

He sends his dad a quick text about getting turned around or some bullshit, not wanting to deal with the barrage of messages his mom would undoubtedly send. He doesn't even know what he typed, it felt like he was watching someone else send the message, screen too blurred to read, fingers shaking and typing way too slow. His dad responds almost immediately, wanting to call and speak to him, so Bakugou texts some other pathetic excuse about his throat hurting, probably getting a cold or whatever, so he shouldn't call.

He couldn't talk if he wanted to, but not because he was fucking _scared_, he's perfectly fucking_ fine_, he's just thirsty, from all the running Deku made him do earlier. Yeah, that's why he can't talk.

He turns off his phone and ends up regretting that pretty quickly. It's dark and he's tripping over everything as he makes his way out of the run-down building. He's too stubborn to turn it back on, and by some miracle he doesn't trip and fall through a hole in the floor, or have something topple over and crush him. He's too out of it to remember his quirk would provide a source of light.

Once he's outside he has to figure out which way he came from. Nothing is recognizable in the dark, though he doubted he'd recognize anything in daylight either. He grips his phone tightly as he resists the urge to turn it on. The last thing he wants to deal with is his parents, or at least that's what he tells himself. He makes his way through an ally and walks towards the first streetlight he sees.

He just needs to see where the fuck he is. He just staying in the light so he can see better, he's not a goddamn kid afraid of the dark. It's not like All For One is going to pop out of every shadowy corner, the fucker is bedridden.

Despite the illumination, Bakugou still has no idea where the hell he is. He's in a really shitty part of town, that much is obvious, but he has no idea which way will get him home quicker. Fucking Deku got him turned around, but Bakugou is too drained to give a shit, so he just picks a direction and walks.

He sees way too many shady people watching him, and he crushes the paranoia that they're all henchmen of that scarfaced bastard. He's shaking, but he channels every ounce of energy he has left into pure, absolute _rage_. He forces himself to keep his stride sure and confident, sends his worst fucking glares at any and everyone. He doesn't fucking care if he intimidates them or not, he just wants to be _left the fuck alone_.

He's holding onto his sanity by a thread, and if someone even _thinks_ to try and mug him, they're getting blasted sky high, fuck the rules against using quirks.

He's so caught up in his head that he doesn't even realize he's in a better part of town until he bumps into someone. That finally snaps him out of it, and to his relief he finally recognizes where he is. He's so emotionally drained that he can't even feel anymore, let alone get mad at the guy that bumped into him. He just trudges back as best he can, exhaustion slowing his movements.

When he opens the door it's to his mother's furious yelling, but he just ignores her and tries to make his way to the stairs. He feels a hand on his shoulder, and it spins him around, but whatever his parents were going to say is silenced once they get a good look at him.

Bakugou knows he must look like shit, but it must be pretty bad to make his _mother's_ mood do a complete 180. His father is looking at him in complete shock, but Bakugou is too tired to feel guilty about worrying them. The consequences of staying out so late are not his problem right now. He mumbles something akin to an apology and just goes upstairs to his room.

They don't try to stop him.

The minute he shuts his door he leans back against it and lets out a shaky breath. He stays like that for a while, slightly trembling in the safety of his room. He goes to put his head in his head in his hands, but is reminded that he's still holding that envelope.

He throws it in the trash.

It takes him another minute to realize he's crying. He wipes his eyes as best he can, then just throws himself onto the bed. He doesn't bother changing, leaves the lights on, and is out the minute his head hits the pillow.

* * *

The next morning, Bakugou has a blissful few minutes of peace before the memories from the other day start trickling in. It doesn't feel real, but…

He groans into his pillow, knowing he won't be able to get back to sleep now. He forces himself up, and immediately heads to the trashcan and fishes the envelope out. He can't keep denying what happened when the damn proof is right in front of his face. He wants to blow the piece of shit to smithereens, doesn't want anything to do with that creepy motherfucker...

He tears it open.

He starts reading the letter and does a double-take. Bakugou blinks owlishly at it, confused as hell.

"...What the fuck?"

* * *

**Be honest, tell me what you think of this so far! I'd like to think I'm putting an interesting twist on the whole Villain!AU genre. **

**This chapter was a bit of a prelude to the main story, and next chapter will be after a time skip. That's when the actual villain academy part starts, but from Midoriya's pov. This fic is going to mostly be told from Midoriya and Bakugou's perspective, as they're the main focus of this fic, but I'm sure I'll switch it up every now and then. **

**I want to point out that this in a gen fic, and while I realize there are a lot of BakuDeku vibes in this first chapter, I have no plans for any romance/shipping in this fic. If this changes I'll be sure to let you know. **


	2. One Year Later

**A Year Later**

Midoriya has been looking forward to the first day of high school for quite a while now. Partly because he wants to prove his worth to All For One, partly because he can see Bakugou again.

Midoriya wonders if Bakugou ever tried to get into contact again. He certainly would have loved another chance to properly talk to Kacchan, but unfortunately, AFO forbade any contact before the Academy opened. It's a shame, they have a lot to catch up on, and he wants to apologize for pulling a gun on him.

He didn't want to use it, but Bakugou gave him no choice.

Hopefully they'll be able to make up for the lost time soon. Midoriya is sure Bakugou wants to know where he's been all these years, why he was only able to see Midoriya again for a moment…

He wonders what Kacchan will make of him now. Does he still see Midoriya as _Deku_, the little kid that disappeared all those years ago…?

Midoriya remembers the look on his childhood friend's face, when the gun was pointed at him.

Is _that_ the Deku he'll see…?

Midoriya hopes they'll become friends again.

He shakes thought of Bakugou away, he has to _focus_, he has a mission to complete. Midoriya resists the urge to adjust his uniform yet again as he makes his way onto school grounds. He hasn't properly met his other classmates yet, but he did see some of them moving in last night. AFO offered to tell him who he'd be spending the next three years with, but Midoriya turned him down. He wanted to make his own first impressions.

Midoriya caught himself mumbling and immediately shut up. There were _hundreds_ of normal students at this school, he doesn't want them to overhear something they shouldn't! He glances back and realizes he stopped walking, lost in his thoughts. Flushing slightly, he looks around, but there's no one nearby, not this early. He pushes his embarrassment aside and continues on.

The walk from the dorms to the main building was short, despite the vastness of the school grounds. The dorms themselves were newly built and beautiful, but he stood in awe of the main building. It was one thing to see it in pictures, but standing in front of it was something else.

Tall and gleaming, it towered over the rest of the building on campus. It looked like it had been plucked straight from the Tokyo skyline, tastefully modern but not too gaudy. Curving at the top and reaching a point, it reminded him of a spear piercing the sky, tinted windows reflecting the sky in a silvery sheen. The landscape surrounding the building was dotted with beautiful flowers, shrubbery, and trees. They provided some privacy from prying eyes that tried looking past the gilded gates surrounding the massive plot of land. Further back, dorms and a few other buildings blend together, shaped like tinier versions of the main building. The dorms are tinted in different colors for each year, to add a bit of color against the otherwise monotone backdrop, and to make the dorms easier to find. The first year dorms are tinted bluish gray, like a cloudy sky.

Yaku Academy may only be starting its first year of operation, but with funding from some of Japan's most prestigious and wealthy people, the public's expectations are high, to say the least. Their public image was carefully crafted, and few knew the truth behind the grand, charitable façade.

The Yaoyorozu's and the Detnerat company knew a _bit_ more about what they were investing in, and Midoriya's classmates knew the general idea behind everything. Midoriya _certainly_ knew the most, but he knows AFO isn't telling him everything, though Midoriya would never ask even if AFO offered to tell him more. Midoriya doesn't know which teachers know what, if they are just turning a blind eye to the shadiness, or if they're just ignorant.

And speaking of public perceptions, under any other circumstances, Midoriya Izuku never would have _dreamed_ about going to such a prestigious school. And so, Midoriya took the entrance exam, to prove to _himself_ he was worthy of being here. He was probably the only one in his class that actually took the exam, now that he thought about it...

Midoriya double checks the homeroom number, unnecessary since he memorized both his schedule and the school's floor plan weeks ago, but it calms his nerves, if just a bit. It's easy to get lost in the sea of blue, black, and red uniforms, and the buzz of the drowsy, early morning crowd makes it easy to smother his worries. He's surprised so many students are up this early, but he supposes he isn't the only one who wants to make a good impression on the first day. Not that Midoriya needs to get on the teacher's good side, since most of them already know who Midoriya is, to some degree.

Once he finally gets to the classroom, Midoriya finds he isn't he first one to arrive. Some tall kid with glasses is in his seat already, with his nose buried in his planner. It looks like he's taking notes from the student handbook.

Midoriya stands by the open door, feeling awkward. Should he say hello or just go to his seat?

The boy ended up making the decision for him, when his eyes snapped up. Before Midoriya has the chance to say something the boy shoots up, clears the distance between them in a blink of an eye, and somehow gets Midoriya's hand in a bone-crushing handshake.

"I'm glad to see I'm not the only one to arrive so early." He vigorously shakes their hands up and down. "I was hoping I wouldn't be the only one to take this opportunity seriously. Iida Tenya, it's nice to meet you." Iida lets go of his hand, and Midoriya tries not to wince.

"M-midoriya Izuku, it's nice to meet you too." He isn't sure what to make of him. This guy–Iida, _towered_ over him and was built like a solid brick wall, but he moved _fast _for someone his size. Midoriya nearly had a heart attack when Iida charged at him, but he seemed to act like a…_proper_ sort of guy?

Midoriya thinks for a moment, and realization dawns.

"It's Iida right...? I don't mean to pry, but that name sounds familiar, have we met before?" Iida went rigid for a brief second, eyes hard. Despite Midoriya's brief panic, he stood his ground and maintained eye contact. He may be nervous around new people, and self-conscious and anxious at times, but he wasn't a cowardly little kid anymore.

Iida seems to be looking at Midoriya for _something_, and the last thing Midoriya wants to do is show weakness. Though his classmates would _literally_ be his partners in crime, Midoriya has to make sure he has their respect and trust. Each classmate is here for their own reasons, has different beliefs and goals. Not everyone will agree with what he and AFO are doing, and Midoriya knows he must twist his motivations for being here, to make sure _everyone_ would be on his side, when the time came.

This talk with Iida could be considered the first step in making those connections. Hopefully, he can gain some sort of camaraderie with Iida, if he's careful…

Iida stared a bit more before nodding to himself, seemingly satisfied with what he found.

"You're probably thinking of my older brother, Iida Tensei. He...was a pretty famous vigilante." His pride quickly shifted to something more bitter, and then it clicked.

"Ingenium! _Oh_, right..." Midoriya's eyes softened in genuine sympathy. Such a waste... "I remember how terribly the heroes handled that. It's completely unacceptable that they only got a slap on the wrist. Vigilante or not, your brother was doing an _amazing_ job at cleaning up crime."

Midoriya mentally slotted this information away. He knew bits about what happened to Ingenium, but he'd have to look up details of the incident later. If Iida was going to be a vigilante like his brother, there may be lines Iida isn't willing to cross. This would certainly make him a _troublesome_ ally, though AFO likely already figured out how to use Iida, since he was accepted into this school.

Maybe if Iida is planning on taking vengeance, Midoriya might be able to push him closer to the villain's side. Vigilante's were _so tricky_ to deal with, for both heroes and villains. They were too deep in the gray area half the time, and so _unpredictable_…

"Are you following in his footsteps?" Midoriya asks. "Is that what brought you here?"

"Yes, something like that...you seem quite interested about the incident." Iida observed, more curious than accusing.

"Oh, yes, I uh, love studying quirks...of heroes and villains alike. I have...a lot of notes." Midoriya was slightly embarrassed.

"Would it be too much trouble to ask if I could see the notes on my brother...?" That wasn't the response Midoriya was expecting, but he can roll with it.

"Oh, not at all! But I don't have them with me right now, we could meet up in the dorm later...?" He offered, hopeful.

"Yes, definitely. I'm sure the study rooms won't be too crowded on the first day, but I won't be taking time out of you day for this, would I? You're done moving in?" Iida asked.

"Yes, I am, it's okay! I moved in last night. I guess we just missed each other...?"

"I moved in yesterday morning, so I might have been in bed." Iida nodded to himself. "I haven't seen any of our other classmates, have you?"

"I saw a few moving in last night, but I didn't really get to talk to them. I think everyone else should be moving in after classes today." Midoriya guessed.

"What do you think of them so far? I can't imagine what kind of people will end up here." Iida frowned.

Midoriya could understand his concern. Even without knowing much, he's aware that there will be a killer or two among the class. All useful allies, but if Iida is leaning more towards vigilante than villain, he might have trouble getting along with everyone. That's something Midoriya will try to keep an eye on…it'd be a shame if something as silly as _morals_ divided the class.

"Well, most of them look like normal kids at first glance…" Midoriya tries remembering anything useful, almost wishing he'd let AFO tell him about his classmates. Unfortunately, the few students he saw didn't really stick out. They certainly _acted_ like normal teenagers…

"We're supposed to blend in, so it would be disappointing if they acted like villains! I'd have to reconsider if all this was worth my time, if whoever's in charge is just letting _anyone_ in." Iida was gesturing wildly, and Midoriya had to take a step back.

Iida made a good point, but Midoriya trusted AFO's judgment. He wasn't sure what to make of Iida, but he's probably a safe person to be around, so long as Midoriya keeps his more…_unsavory_ opinions to himself, at least for now. Midoriya wouldn't say he trusts him, but he thinks there's a pretty low chance of Iida trying to kill him, so that has to count for something…

"Some of them definitely gave off a weird vibe, but I'm more worried about the people I can't read." Midoriya adds, and he isn't lying. As much as he trusts in his own ability to analyze people and figure out how they and their quirk work, if someone is good at hiding their true intentions, how can Midoriya trust what he sees? He's not at AFO's level yet, not even close.

The two talked a bit more about their classmates and themselves, keeping to safer topics. Midoriya has to skirt around some questions, and if Iida notices he doesn't pry. Midoriya also avoids topics like vigilantism and Ingenium, though he plans on doing his own research on Iida later. Hopefully he won't have to ask AFO to fill in the details. It'd be embarrassing to ask AFO for help after turning it down already.

Overall, Midoriya was honestly surprised how well this day was going. It might be too soon to say, but he honestly thinks Iida could become his friend, and a _wonderful_ ally. The thought makes him giddy.

Classmates trickle in as time passes, and he recognizes a few faces from the other night, like the girl with the surgical mask and gloves, and the boy with red hair and an eye patch. Then there was _Kacchan_...

Bakugou glared when he saw Midoriya, but nothing more. Bakugou sat as far away from him as possible, and Midoriya isn't sure what to make of that.

He didn't have much time to dwell on it. As more people come in the air gets tense. Everyone was told to _behave_, to not make a scene, but the people here aren't exactly the type to listen to authority.

Two girls start talking, with one looking indifferent about the conversation, and the other oblivious to the tense atmosphere. A blonde guy tries flirting with a girl covered in piercings and tattoos, but she hasn't taken her eyes off her phone since arriving. A kid with a bird head appears to be talking to himself…?

Midoriya really shouldn't be surprised if his classmates have a few screws loose.

An invisible girl and a wild-looking pink girl are having a loud conversation about fashion, so maybe they're some of the normal ones. Bakugou is sitting next to the two girls, and soon he's telling them to _shut the fuck up_. The pink girl just flips him off, and for a hot second Midoriya worries things are going to _escalate_, but a guy with spiky red hair jumps in and gets them to chill. Apparently, he knows the pink girl, and it seems the situation is diffused. The guy tries talking to Bakugou, but that goes about as well as Midoriya expected. The redhead eventually takes the hint and leaves Bakugou alone.

Everyone else is either minding their own business or sizing their other classmates up, and Midoriya starts taking notes. There's not much to write down yet, so he feels it's safe to pull out his newest notebook. He can feel eyes on him but he ignores them, for now. He isn't writing anything all that interesting.

The bell rings and Midoriya turn his attention to their home room teacher as she walks in. He doesn't know much about her, not even her quirk. The rest of his classmates are _completely_ in the dark about her, and his their nerves are making Midoriya anxious and excited. He wonders what she'll do.

"Hello everyone, I'm Himura Akari." She strides in confidently, seemingly indifferent to all the villains in the room. She's dressed in a nice pantsuit, dark red hair pulled up in a bun, all prim and proper, looking every bit like a normal teacher.

"Aside from being your home room teacher, I will be helping you manage your school life with any _extracurricular activities_ you get involved with." Scarlet eyes size up each student, unimpressed. "All of your classes will be typical high school classes, aside from the last one: _Quirk Wellness."_

She walks up and down the aisles, staring intently at each student she passes. Some wither under her stare, others face it head on in defiance or challenge, but no one can look away. It's like a physical _pull_, forcing their eyes to meet hers.

Then it clicks for Midoriya. It's _got_ to be her quirk. He _physically_ can't turn his head away from her. If Himura Akari notices his struggling, she doesn't do anything about it.

"Quirk Wellness is the reason you're all here today. I don't know what brought you to this point, or what you hope to accomplish, or what made you _worthy_ of our time, but I _do_ know that'll you'll be working together from here on out."

She's back up front, and other students seem to realize she's using her quirk on them. From what Midoriya can see in his peripherals, others are struggling and failing, to turn away. Her grip on their bodies, or minds, is unwavering. Even with twenty people struggling against her, her quirk doesn't waver. It doesn't even look like their teacher is breaking a sweat. She must be _incredibly_ skilled with her quirk...

Himura looks around at the struggling students, and then she does _something, _because suddenly Midoriya can't see _anything_ _except her eyes_.

It's like the world around him drowned in black and smothered his other senses. He's not in pain, because he can't feel _anything_, and he swears she's staring right into his _soul_.

If she stopped using her quirk right now, Midoriya knows he wouldn't want to look away. He's _fascinated_, itching to ask about her quirk, how it works, what _exactly_ she's doing to him.

"_If you fail Quirk Wellness, fail to keep your grades up, or fail to maintain you cover, there will be __**consequences**__."_ Her voices reverberates in his mind with more force than one of Bakugou's explosions.

And as suddenly as it came, her grip on his mind disappears with a violent _lurch_, like a rubber band snapping. The lights, colors, and sounds of the world _slam_ into him, literally knocking the air from his lungs. He has headache worse than anything he's ever had before, and it makes him want to curl in on himself. Midoriya does just that, or as much as he can in his desk. As the ringing in his ears die down, he blinks a bit, and notices his classmates aren't doing much better. A few have even collapsed onto the floor, and several look nauseous.

Despite it all, Midoriya forces himself upright, looks up at his new homeroom teacher, _Himura Akari_.

_What a terrifying quirk._

He _needs_ to learn more about it!

Himura's eyes are less hostile than they were before, but she still looks over everyone with _purpose_. When she noticed Midoriya, he forced himself to not flinch as he once again meets her bloody eyes. Nothing else happens, and if she recognizes Midoriya she doesn't show it.

He has to wonder, how much does she already know about him?

They don't hold each other's gaze for long, and she soon moves onto the next student. Midoriya follows her gaze as well, and isn't surprised to see Bakugou glaring right at her. What _does _surprise him is that Bakugou wasn't the only one meeting her gaze head on. The guy with the eye patch, the (boy?) with a bird head, the girl with the surgical mask, and even Iida...

Midoriya mentally kicks himself. He really _shouldn't_ have been surprised. After all, if they were all deemed _worthy_ enough to be here, they aren't going to be pushovers.

...Well, there seemed to be a few exceptions. The guy with purple (grapes?) things on his head was half-hiding behind his desk, pale as a sheet.

_"__Now__,"_ Himura's voice demanded attention, though it didn't seem to be a result of her quirk this time. "I think this should be obvious by now, but there is no turning back from here on out. If you want to make it out of this experience _alive_, and reach your goals, then I suggest you _behave_ _yourselves_. Rule breaking will _not_ be tolerated here. You will get no other warning. Your first offense is your **last**."

Just then, the bell rang. Midoriya, and most of his classmates were startled by the sudden noise. Time passed so quickly, how long were they under Himura's control...?

"Have fun in math class." Himura turned and strode out the classroom door, like nothing ever happened.

"...What the hell?"

Midoriya wasn't sure who said that, but he couldn't agree more. Today was going to be _interesting_…

* * *

**A/N: So, what do you think of Himura Akari? I'm sure most of you were expecting Aizawa, huh? Fun fact! According to the internet, some spellings of her name can translate to "red village red village." It made me laugh, kinda like a subtler version of Tetsutetsu's name! **

**Now, onto the important stuff! What do you think of villain!Midoriya? I'm trying to keep him and his personality in character as much as possible, especially since his brief appearance last chapter was a bit ooc, with the gun and everything. Midoriya is still a nervous and self-conscious kid, but he's been around AFO for **_**years**_**, ya know? Both Midoriya and Bakugou are different people from cannon, but for **_**very**_** different reasons…**


	3. The First Test

**The First Test**

As the end of the school day drew nearer, everyone was on edge.

After the _eventful_ start to the day, the classes that followed homeroom were suspiciously normal. It was jarring, but Midoriya was expecting it. The rest of the class was completely in the dark, so Midoriya made sure to keep an eye on his fellow classmates, to study them.

Most were shaken by Himura Akari's threat, and some were bad at hiding it. Still, Midoriya couldn't be _sure_ who was acting. Some of his classmates could be playing up how scared they were, to get the others to drop their guard.

Hero or villain, it was bad to show weakness.

Now, the students that were able to brush it off what their teacher did, like it was nothing? _They_ were the ones that intrigued him the most. Midoriya was _dying_ to learn more about them. His notes were depressingly barren.

As classes wore on and the teachers did their thing, many students dropped their guard, others looked plain bored, but a few remained vigilant, and wary.

It was _fascinating,_ what he could learn in just a couple of hours.

When lunchtime had come around, it proved to be more awkward than tense. Everyone dispersed and intermingled with the other first years, or sat by themselves, if they could. There weren't many corners to hide in, and Midoriya quickly lost track of his classmates. He wondered how many were playing up the "average student" thing, and how many just wanted to hang out with normal people.

Iida made for pleasant company, so they sat together, and they talked about lighter topics. Ingenium, or vigilantism in general, wasn't brought up again. It would be embarrassing if the normal students overheard something they shouldn't. Talking with Iida, Midoriya almost felt like a normal high school student. Iida was certainly passionate about his studies.

Despite all the distractions of class, Midoriya couldn't stop glancing over at Bakugou, expecting _something_. Not even his note-taking was enough to distract him for long. Midoriya had yet to catch him in the act, but he could _swear_ he felt Bakugou watching him.

Bakugou had been ignoring Midoriya all day, and as time went on, it seemed less and less likely Bakugou would confront him. Bakugou was understandably suspicious of Midoriya, but he hadn't done _anything_, and that was setting Midoriya on edge. It wasn't like Bakugou to not _act_.

Maybe he didn't know Bakugou as well as he'd thought? Unlikely, but he'd have to investigate this further. Just in case.

Their apparent game of cat and mouse was making him paranoid. Midoriya wanted to talk to him sooner rather than later, to just get it over with. But considering how things went down between them last time, Midoriya figured this had to be on _Bakugou's_ own terms.

Luckily, Midoriya was used to watching people from afar.

* * *

As their last class ended, the tense atmosphere returned with a vengeance. The _warm welcome_ their homeroom teacher gave them was making everyone paranoid, and for good reason.

For Quirk Wellness, everyone had to change into gym clothes, then head towards the gymnasium at the far end of the school grounds. Midoriya wondered how many of his classmates noticed just how _isolated_ the gym was from the rest of the school...

When they arrived, many hesitated by the door, but not Bakugou. He kept walking, never breaking his stride as he threw the doors open. Several students flinched when the doors slammed into the gym walls, and Midoriya jumped as everyone tensed.

Nothing happened as Bakugou made his way inside.

The rest of the class cautiously followed Bakugou, and were greeted by nothing but an empty gym. There wasn't even a teacher in sight.

Confused murmurs mixed with their footsteps, echoing around the massive interior as everyone looked around, suspicious and confused. The gym doors closed with a soft _click_, and a familiar sensation hit Midoriya. He couldn't help but grimace.

_God he's always hated this. _

Choking on the putrid sludge had never been a fun experience, but Midoriya knew how to go along with it with minimal discomfort. The rest of the class was panicking and choking as they began to teleport.

Midoriya glanced over at Bakugou, who looked more pissed than scared. Bakugou caught Midoriya's eye, and Midoriya would have given him an apologetic look, had the dark slime not been covering most of his face. This probably wasn't a fun memory for Bakugou.

Everything went black for a moment, and the muffled sounds of his struggling classmates subsides. Midoriya was weightless only for a moment, before he landed on steady feet. He took a deep breath, and spit out the sludge stuck in his mouth. As he shook the remaining goop off himself, his classmates landed in a heap on the floor, racked with coughing fits as they tried to get the breath back into their lungs. Midoriya may have taken a deep breath, right before the sludge could choke him, but it didn't make the sensation any more _pleasant_.

Midoriya spat the last of the slime out of his mouth, and surveyed their new surroundings. There wasn't much to see, considering it was so dark. The gym they just came from was huge, but this place seemed to be at least _twice_ as big, with a ceiling at least thirty feet high. The air was musty, and it reminded Midoriya of a basement. Were they underground…?

Making the best of the situation, he shifted his focus, and let himself brainstorm. If they weren't going to have Quirk Wellness in the gym, then something _important_ must be planned, right? He should prepare for anything.

So lost in thought, Midoriya almost didn't hear the footsteps until they got closer. The sudden sound made a few students jump, while the rest tried to figure out where they were coming from. The echoing made it impossible to tell, until a figure stepped into the dim light.

"Welcome, everyone! If you could follow me, we have _quite_ a lot to cover today." Their teacher licked her lips, and her eyes gleamed with mischief. Midoriya recognized her immediately.

"The villain Midnight..." Midoriya said to himself.

"Oh, do I have a _fan?"_ She purred.

It seemed Midoriya didn't say that as quietly as he thought he did…his mumbling is really going to come back and bite him in the ass someday.

"Uh." He mentally kicked himself. _Everyone_ was staring at him now. "K-kind of...? I mean, I'm interested in a lot of famous villains, and pro heroes..."

"_Sooo_, why don't you tell the class about me, hm? I'm just _dying_ to hear it." She gave him a wink, and Midoriya tried not to balk. He knew this teasing and flirting was just a façade. She was a dangerous villain, and now all her attention was on him.

"Well, y-you became well known a few years ago, for the murder of the pro hero Flashbang, but police connected a few other attacks to you before this… You're pretty infamous, and you quirk has something to do with knocking people out but no one has–" His explanation was cut short before he could really start mumbling, thankfully.

"Aren't you talkative!" She clapped her hands together. "Allow me to take it from there!" She walked over and pinched his cheeks. Normally, Midoriya would be nervous to have someone so dangerous so close, but right then he was just embarrassed. Her costume _really_ didn't cover anything…

"I'll fill you in on my quirk! It's the whole reason I was offered this job in the first place, after all." Her grin grew sharper, and she winked one last time at Midoriya before backing off and turning to the rest of the class.

"Short version: I can secrete a gas that knocks my victims out cold! So, if anyone gets too _rowdy_..." She snaps her fingers, "the situation will be resolved like that! _Minimal bloodshed!_ After all, it'd be a waste to gather everyone here only for you to kill each other, hahaha!"

While their teacher laughed, everyone in class eyed each other.

Suddenly, blinding lights flooded the room with white. Midnight had pulled her mask down just before they flickered on, and seemed to laugh even harder as everyone got an eyeful of fluorescents. As their eyes adjusted, Midnight had made her way up some metal stairs in the back of the room, and now stood high above them. She waved down at them from a metal walkway that spanned the entirety of the room.

Midoriya wasn't sure how she got to the other side of the room so fast, and her apparent speed startled him. She had to know what she was doing if _heels_ didn't slow her down. Did she always wear those? He made a mental note to look her up later. Midoriya had a feeling he'd have a lot to write down once class was over, for better or worse.

"Now, before we begin our first class, I have to tell you that we have another teacher for this class! He couldn't make it today because of _prior commitments_." Midnight rolled her eyes, annoyed that she had to do everything herself. "But you'll be seeing him soon enough. Now, let's begin!"

The whip in her hand cracked as she aimed it to her right. A line was painted on the floor, and beyond that a bunch of dummies were scattered around, even on the walls and ceiling.

Midoriya took this opportunity to survey the large room, now that it was well-lit. It was as massive as he'd thought, made of solid concrete, and it seemed the only entrance and exit were the large metal doors in the back. The railings Midnight leaned on seemed a bit rusty, while the rest of the room seemed relatively new, or at least well-kept. The rest of the room was completely empty, aside from the training dummies. There were no windows in sight, which all but confirmed his theory that they were underground _somewhere_. Midoriya didn't have had time to look much closer, as Midnight announced their first task.

"We're starting off with a simple target practice. This will not only be your chance to show off, but it will also give you a chance to see everyone's quirks!" Midnight explained excitedly. "Your classmates are going to be your partners in crime from now on, so it's best you learn what everyone can do _now_. Your life depends on it, after all!"

"Each dummy is worth a certain amount of points. Five, ten, fifteen, and counting all the way to fifty! They're not marked, so the only one who knows how many points they're worth is me." She smirked as she pointed to herself.

"Now, there a few rules to make everything fair. First! You can only take out one target on your turn. You can do this by simply knocking over a dummy, or destroying one, but _only one!_ If you get another target caught up in the crossfire, your points won't be counted!" Midnight cracked her whip. She was certainly one for the theatrics.

"There are forty dummies total, and twenty of you, so we'll do this twice! There will be one more test after target practice, but you don't have to worry about that yet! At the end of class, whoever has the most points will get a reward, and whoever has the least points will be _punished__!_" She practically moaned that last word and _wow_, that was creepy. Midoriya shuddered.

"After all, we're going through so much trouble to train you! We don't want anyone thinking they can slack off just because this isn't a _real_ high school, you know?" Midnight giggled. "Questions, children?"

Iida's hand immediately shot up.

"If there are only forty targets what's stopping someone from destroying several and sabotaging the rest of us? Not receiving points doesn't seem like enough of a deterrent. If we're doing another test after this, surely the points can be made up." Iida had a good point, Midoriya thought.

"Oh, what a good question! And the answer is simple, there's _nothing_ stopping sabotage if you don't care about losing points!" Everyone tensed, but she continued before anyone could respond. "However, I would keep two things in mind!" Midnight smirked down at all of them. She was having way too much fun with this.

"One! You will be working _with each other_ from here on out! If you make too many enemies, you'll only be hurting _yourself_. Two! There's no guarantee you'll be able to get enough points on the second test to make up for it! I haven't even told you what you'll be _doing_, or how many points you could gain!"

Midnight eyed the students a bit before continuing.

"Now, I'll be calling on you randomly, and when you hear your name, step across the line and choose your target!"

Iida's hand was still in the air, but before he could ask another question Midnight pointed at him.

"Thank you for volunteering! Iida Tenya, correct? Go on, go on!" She made a shooing motion.

Iida frowned, and hesitated a bit. Midoriya could empathize, he had a lot of question he wanted to ask too.

In the end, Iida decided to just go along with it. He looked over the targets for a second before zeroing in on one. A whine echoed as the engines in his legs fired up, and he shot towards a dummy in the back. Everyone's heads whipped around as they tried to keep up with his speed. Despite being such a bulky guy, Iida hadn't so much a bumped into any of the other dummies as he ran. He had weaved seamlessly through them all with a grace he could only have from experience. With impressive footwork he twisted and kicked the dummy's head off in one clean motion. The head hit the back wall with such force it shattered into little pieces.

_Damn_.

"Impressive!" Midnight clapped. "And what luck, you hit one worth 45 points!" Iida smiled triumphantly as he made his way back across the line.

"Oh, and I may have forgotten to mention one _tiiiiny_ detail!" She smirked when everyone tensed. "One of these targets is worth zero points!"

Everyone balked, or glared at her, but she just batted her eyes.

"My bad! Now let's see, who should go next...?"

Despite the chance to show off, many of Midoriya's classmates just went up to a dummy and pushed it over. And though many kept their quirks secret, the exercise wasn't _uneventful_, far from it. Asui had crawled up the wall and threw a dummy clear across the room with her tongue, and Satou punched a dummy so hard it created a giant crater in the wall.

Overall, Yaoyorozu was probably the most impressive, but not because of how she destroyed the dummy. She was actually one of the students that pushed hers over. Incredibly, she had figured out which dummy was worth what. Momo wasn't surprised at all when Midnight announced the fifty-point dummy. Midoriya was in awe, but some classmates were pissed. After all, this was supposed to be _luck_ based.

Yaoyorozu simply explained that she had observed Midnight's reactions when the other students were picking their targets. She claimed that she could only narrow it down, and that she couldn't _guarantee_ that she'd get the 50 points, but not everyone believed her.

Unsurprisingly, when Bakugou's turn came up, he made _quite_ the show. He chose the dummy that was highest off the ground, rocketed himself up with ease, and blew apart the dummy with an excessively large explosion. There wasn't much of it left, aside from a few charred pieces.

Midoriya was surprised with his precision, as Bakugou didn't so much as _singe_ another dummy, despite the dummies being placed so close together. Midoriya had expected Bakugou to be the one sabotaging everyone else, but then he supposed there wasn't a point. Bakugou always wanted to win fair and square.

Midoriya ended up being the last to go, and his turn passed with little fanfare. There was no point trying to show off, even if he wanted to. The quirk AFO gave him was more impressive against a living person, after all. Midoriya simply knocked over a dummy, one only worth fifteen points.

After the second round was over, Midoriya was still near the bottom of the rankings, but he was confident he'd do better in the second task. Whatever it was.

"I'm sure you're eager to hear what the second test is, hm? Well, it's not based on luck, and chances are you'll _have_ to use your quirk this time!" She gave them all a once-over, sly grin never wavering. "The next test is…_a team building activity!"_

The class was less than thrilled to hear that, but it wasn't exactly unexpected. Maybe this first class would be easier than he'd been expecting, so long as no one tried murdering each other.

"Now, I want you to create teams of four! You should consider what you've observed from the first round, but keep in mind that it's _teamwork_ that'll get you points this time, _not_ firepower!"

Well, that didn't bode well for Bakugou. He was never a team player, and that likely hadn't changed over the years. Still, Midnight had yet to announce the specifics of the next task, so Midoriya shouldn't underestimate him.

Looking around, Midoriya wasn't surprised several people were trying to team up with Yaoyorozu. The rest of the class started moving about, talking softly and eyeing everyone suspiciously. There was little trust here, and even fewer wanted to reveal their quirks. The element of surprise was a criminal's greatest advantage against the heroes, after all. In a class of villains, showing off their quirk was the same as revealing a weakness…

Not everyone shared the same view, of course. Some villains were just cocky, others were confident they could handle themselves even if their quirk was known. Midoriya knew Bakugou _looked_ like the cocky kind, but that'd work to Bakugou's advantage. Midoriya wouldn't make that mistake, and he'll make sure his team doesn't either. If Bakugou was underestimated, then he _will_ win.

Maybe if Bakugou gets emotional, he'll get distracted, act recklessly…

Midoriya's mind spun as he prepared for the inevitable clash with Bakugou.

Since his focus was elsewhere, Midoriya didn't notice that most of the class had made teams. When he realized, he joined the first group of three he saw. After a brief introduction, and a warning to his team about Bakugou, Midoriya was lost in his head again. As the last stragglers joined up, he noted which teams looked like the most trouble.

Bakugou had ended up with Momo on his team, which wasn't surprising. One of their teammates was the redhead that tried talking to Bakugou earlier. Midnight called the redhead Kirishima, if Midoriya was remembering correctly. Their other teammate was the girl wearing a surgical mask, Asui.

Another team was made up of Kaminari, Shouji, Satou, and Kouda. They seemed to be more of an offensive group, but you could never be sure if quirks matched appearances. Midoriya hoped they were brawns over brains.

Then there was Aoyama, Ashido, Tokoyami, and Sero. Ashido's acid quirk looked as dangerous as you'd expect acid to be, and Aoyama's laser seemed to have good range. Sero would be tricky to go up against. Tokoyami was…downright terrifying, but in a different way than his teammates. Tokoyami's quirk was literally monstrous, as small as it was. And he wouldn't stop talking to it…

Midoriya himself ended up with Hagakure, Jirou, and Mineta. He wasn't sure what to make of them, but he knew appearances could be deceiving. Maybe they'd work well together? Strategy-wise, Midoriya would prefer to have a heavy hitter on his team, to make the team more rounded out. Still, he was sure he could come up with a good strategy with their quirks.

He didn't get to talk with them long, but Midoriya had a basic idea of what they were like. Hagakure seemed bubbly and a bit ditzy, and Mineta seemed a bit cowardly, if the way he flinched back from Jirou was any indication. Midoriya took note of how Mineta seemed to be looking at the girls in class, and he worried that Mineta wouldn't be taking this seriously.

Jirou, out of everyone in class, looked the most like a delinquent. She seemed to be perpetually annoyed, not to mention scary looking, though not quite _Bakugou_ scary. She had a lot of tattoos and piercings, but appearances could be deceiving. She wasn't trying to pick a fight, and didn't appear to anger quickly like Bakugou. Maybe she'd work well with the others?

Looking back at the other teams, Midoriya took note of Iida's, which seemed to be the most well-rounded of them all. Iida had another bubbly, normal-looking girl on his team, Uraraka. Then there was Ojirou, and the guy with red hair and an eyepatch. When Midnight had only called him Shouto, during target practice, that had raised a few eyebrows. Unsurprising, since Shouto was only going by his given name.

Hagakure seemed immediately interested in Shouto. She said he was quite the mystery, not just hiding his family name, but also his quirk. Something about him just drew everyone's attention, she said.

Midoriya quickly reevaluated his first impressions of Hagakure.

It was easy to brush off what she said, to think she was just a teen girl with a crush, but Midoriya was observant. She saw more than she was letting on, and that made Midoriya _excited_. What exactly did she see? What gave Shouto away?

_Did she_ _**know**__…?_

Midoriya was about to ask, but Midnight called everyone's attention before he could do anything. As their teacher spoke, he could _swear_ he felt Hagakure staring at him.

"Everyone have their teams? Good!" She never gave time for anyone to answer. "Now, let's begin!"

Suddenly the lights cut out, plunging everything into darkness. Midoriya could have sworn he heard growling. Then the lights flickered back on, and Midnight was nowhere to be seen.

A timer had appeared above the metal doors in the back of the room, and then the huge metal doors creaked open. The timer started counting down.

"What are you waiting for?" Midnight's voiced boomed over speakers they couldn't see. "You'd better get moving if you want to get any points!"

Bakugou didn't need to be told twice. He took off running with his teammates hot on his heels. Everyone else took that as their cue, and shoved past each other to get out the door first. Midoriya's team hung near the back, avoiding the stampede as they made their way out. Past the doors, they were led out into a hallway, with only two options: _Left or Right?_

No one could see anything at the end of either hallway, even with the good lighting, so Midoriya's team chose right and ran.

The hallways were seemingly endless, each with a few doors on either side of the hallway, no nameplate or room number to hint at what was inside. Midoriya noticed there were no windows out here either, and he had yet to see a staircase or elevator. There didn't even seem to be an emergency exit. Could this place only be accessed through teleportation?

Midoriya turned his focus back to the task at hand, and he did his best to memorize where they were going. The hallway they chose led to another fork in the road, three different options this time. They picked a direction and ran, but they started to move slower when they didn't find anything except more hallways. Every time they picked a direction it just led to another hallway, and they were no closer to finding something, _anything_ that told them what sort of team building exercise this was supposed to be.

Midoriya abruptly stopped.

"Why are you stopping? The other teams are going to beat us at this rate!" Mineta exclaimed, panicking.

"This is more than just a race!" Midoriya's mind was spinning, trying to piece everything together. "Midnight never told us this was _timed_. She never even told us what we are supposed to _do__!_ The time limit might not even be real, she could just want us to panic…" Midoriya trailed off into mumbling.

"So, what, we have to figure out how to get points ourselves?" Jirou asked, dreading the answer.

"I don't know, maybe? But she said this was supposed to be about teamwork, right? Whatever we have to do, it can only be done together." Midoriya reasoned.

"But shouldn't we keep running? There might be clues somewhere!" Mineta exclaimed, still panicking.

"This place is a maze, we could get lost if we aren't careful…" Midoriya looked over at Jirou, who had her earphone jack imbedded in the wall.

"…There are more hallways in every direction, this place is _massive, _damn. I can't even tell how big it is." She closed her eyes and focused. "Some of the teams have split up, and…found something, I think?"

"So let's get hunting for clues! Which room should we choose?" Hagakure asked, eager to keep moving. Jirou pulled her jack out of the wall and pointed.

"If we keep going down the hallway we're in now, there are two rooms, but this hallway also leads to a dead end. We could backtrack completely to where we started and go the other way. It seems like there are more rooms and less hallways back that way, but also more people."

Jirou listed their options, unsure of what else to do. It's not like anyone knew what they were looking for, but if teamwork was a part of it, then she was going to let her teammates choose what to do.

Midoriya was impressed, she hid her nerves well and didn't buckle under pressure, even if she was indecisive. He didn't have time to dwell on it much.

"I say we keep going this way!" Hagakure chimed in.

"That's probably best." Midoriya nods. He doesn't want to run into anyone else, not yet. "And we should stick together. Splitting up might come back to bite us if this is _actually_ a team exercise."

"What do you mean _if_ it's a team thing?" Jirou asked.

"Midnight _literally_ told us this was a team building exercise." Hagakure added. He couldn't see her face, but he could swear he heard the eyeroll in her voice.

"Well…" Midoriya couldn't help but doubt himself, but he added, "Midnight may not be telling the truth. About teamwork earning us points…"

His teammates groaned, because _damn it_ Midoriya could be right. Midnight didn't explain _anything _about points!

"Why couldn't Midnight tell us the rules." Mineta whined as they continue down the hallway, slower this time.

When they made it to the end of the hall, Midoriya opened the first door cautiously, but nothing happened. It was just a normal door to a storage area, dozens upon dozens of shelves lining the room. They were positioned in such a way that the various boxes, shelves, and filing cabinets blocked the view of the rest of the room, like a mini maze. Everything inside was dusty, and the papers strewn about were yellowed and torn, scattered all over the floor, pinned to the wall, and piling up on desks, in boxes, and spilling out of folders. A single, flickering light bathed the room in an eerie glow, while the shelves cast looming shadows.

"This place is giving me the creeps." Mineta said from the doorway. Midoriya agreed, but entered anyways. They weren't going to gain anything from standing around.

"It's like a shitty haunted house." Jirou grimaced as she tried moving some of the boxes around. It kicked up a cloud of dust, and she wiped her hand on her gym pants in disgust.

"We just need to look around for a bit, see if we can find anything. I'm sure most of this stuff isn't important." Midoriya wandered towards the back, while everyone else spread out and picked a spot to start searching.

Most of the papers seemed to consist of old newspapers and letters, with a few random graphs and charts Midoriya couldn't decipher thrown in. He didn't need to look at the dates on the newspapers to figure out how old these things were, newspapers hadn't been printed in over a century.

Midoriya tried to find any hint about what they were supposed to do, but unfortunately, he didn't find anything that explained the rules for this task. Every paper here seemed more like a decoration than a hint, and the dust that covered everything spoke at how long this room had been abandoned. Unless this was the work of someone's quirk, Midoriya was starting to doubt they'd find anything here. Luckily, his teammates knew what they were doing.

"I think I found something!" Hagakure exclaimed. "Is it a code?"

They gathered around and examined the paper she'd found. It was as withered as everything else in the room, but the ink looked new. It was covered in a bunch of numbers and letters, and it was the only thing that looked out of place. No one could read it, but maybe if they decoded it…?

"Probably. We should look somewhere else. Unless anyone found something?" Midoriya asked. They shook their heads.

"How'd you find that so fast?" Jirou asked.

"If there's one thing I know, it's where people hide important stuff!" Hagakure giggled. "People are just predictable like that." Jirou side-eyed her.

"Remind me to lock my door at night." Jirou mumbled.

"That's not gonna stop anyone from getting in if they really want to!" Hagakure cackled.

"I'll leave my door unlocked!" Mineta exclaimed.

"You _wish_." Hagakure huffed.

As they headed out, Jirou paused, and jammed her jack into the wall. Midoriya was about to ask if she heard something, but she held a finger to her lips as she concentrated.

"...No one's making their way over to us yet, but I think another team is fighting…? We should hurry." They picked up the pace as they approached the second room.

They opened the door to a classroom, but it was too dark inside to make out much else. The dim lights from the hallway were the only thing illuminating the room. The light switch wasn't working, and they didn't have any flashlights. They couldn't use their phones either, because they'd all been told to leave them in their lockers before coming to class. They kept the door open as wide as they could as they searched, but the classroom was still too dark in the back. They had to move slowly, and it seemed to take forever just to search half of the room, and the further back they searched the slower they got. They couldn't risk missing something important.

"_Fuck this_." Jirou shot up and turned back towards the door. "I'm not wasting my time stumbling around in the dark." As if to emphasize her point, she nearly tripped over a chair and almost crashed into the wall. She cursed and kicked the chair, sending it crashing into a cabinet.

"Wait, where are you going!?" Midoriya was torn between continuing the search and chasing after her. They were better off staying together, right?

"I don't know, I'll go look in a room with better lighting or whatever." Jirou bit out as she left.

"But we're supposed to be a team!" Mineta panicked.

"And what have we accomplished so far?" Jirou paused by the door, blocking what little light they had. "That pile of floating clothes seems to know what she's doing, let her handle this room and we can go somewhere else." She seemed to have calmed down a bit, at least.

"Hey, I have a name you know! And I can't see in the dark either!" Hagakure sounded pissed, but to her credit she didn't stop searching.

"I know we're running out of time, but we need to stay together. You could, uh, be the lookout?" Midoriya hoped he could keep Jirou from running off. They'd never accomplish _anything_ if they were fighting amongst themselves.

Midoriya wasn't the best leader, but he had to try and keep everyone together. It was the only hint Midnight gave them before they started this task. Even if this turned out to _not_ be a team building exercise, Midoriya knew they'd run into others eventually.

The fighting earlier probably involved Bakugou's team, but if not, Midoriya _knew_ Bakugou would want to fight him. Midoriya had a general idea of what to do when Bakugou inevitably showed up, but he _needed_ his team around for it to work, especially if Bakugou's team ended up joining the fight as well. He'd like to get out of this exercise in one piece.

"Alright, alright!" Jirou sighed. "I'll keep an ear out, but hurry up. If we waste any more time, I'm going ahead of you guys." Midoriya could understand her frustration, and was relieved she stayed.

Everyone agreed to that, and their search continued. Not long after, Jirou was warning them that a team was making their way over. There were enough twists and turns between Midoriya's team and theirs, but they'd run into them sooner rather than later if they stayed. They had to get moving, unless they wanted a fight on their hands.

Just before they left, Midoriya saw something out of the corner of his eye. It was dark in this corner of the room, but his eyes had started adjusting. He could have _sworn_ he saw something. He felt around a bit, and his hand caught on something.

"I think I found the clue!" Midoriya exclaimed as he looked over what he'd found. He quickly moved into the light, and grabbed their team's other clue, trying to piece it together. Did they have to decipher these, or collect them? Was their team building exercise just a scavenger hunt?

"C'mon, keep moving." Jirou urged. "If we're quick we can sneak past the others."

They all agreed that sneaking around instead of fighting would be best. Midoriya's team was definitely not built for direct confrontation. Midoriya was more than willing to take advantage of stealth when they could.

Midoriya's quirk worked better when no one saw it coming.

"Wait, I have an idea!" Before they could ask, Mineta had already barred the door with his quirk.

"What are you doing?" Hagakure asked.

"Giving us a leg up! If we missed anything, the other teams will have to waste time breaking in. And if they try to take the balls off the door, they'll get _stuck!"_ He explained, heading towards the first room they entered to block it as well.

"Oh, that's actually pretty clever, you little shit." Jirou commented.

"I can't tell if that's a complement or not…" Mineta thought out loud.

"I'm going to scout ahead! If I'm lucky that team might know how we're supposed to get points!" Hagakure decided suddenly, shoving her clothes into Jirou's hands.

Mineta was suddenly paying close attention to the conversation. Jirou seemed unfazed, but Midoriya was looking _anywhere_ but at Hagakure.

"Wait, before you go, tap on the wall twice if it's clear." Jirou said. "But do it _quietly_. I'll still be able to hear it."

"Awesome, got it!" Hagakure's voice faded as she ran ahead.

It didn't take long before Jirou announced Hagakure had reached the other team. Not long after, Jirou heard the signal and they started moving. Midoriya almost ran into Hagakure when her voice suddenly reappeared in front of him.

"Turns out we got lucky!" She started to explain what she'd learned.

Apparently, it was like a scavenger hunt and a jigsaw puzzle meshed together. There were different codes hidden all around this maze of a building. And unfortunately, it sounded like they needed three or four different codes if they wanted to figure anything out. If they decoded them all, they'd find out the rules of this stupid team exercise.

From what Hagakure had overheard, the team they just snuck by had three codes, but they couldn't decipher any of them. Midoriya double checked their team's clues, but he still couldn't make any sense of it. It looked like random scribbles and symbols, no noticeable pattern or clue jumped out at him.

"Did their code look anything like ours? Did they have a duplicate?" Midoriya asked.

"I didn't see all of them, but the one they had out was covered in a bunch of symbols kinda like ours…" She said as Jirou led them away from the other team. Midoriya went over the clues again.

"Do you think we'll be able to avoid fighting the other teams?" Mineta asked, clearly more worried about fighting than decoding that thing.

"I doubt it." Jirou said, rolling her eyes. "So, where to next?"

"I could go ahead and spy on the other teams." Hagakure suggested.

"Then we should probably make our way over to them." Midoriya said. "If we can't decipher this in time, we'll have to hope the other teams have. We might overhear something useful."

"We could steal the clues. That would be easier than trying to spy on everyone." Mineta added.

"Maybe, but we don't even know if we could decode it in time. Not to mention, we'd probably have to waste time fighting them." Midoriya looked to where Hagakure's voice came from. "If another team decoded this, you and Jirou are our only chance of learning what they know."

"You can count on me!" Hagakure exclaimed.

"…One team is back in the main room, where we had target practice." Jirou said, pulling her jack out of the wall. "They're searching the place. Did we miss something when we all rushed out?"

"I think we should split up! I can spy on them and see if they figured their puzzle thing out." Hagakure suggested. Midoriya hesitated, but Jirou cut him off before he could speak.

"Look, I know you wanna stick together and this is _supposedly_ a team thing or whatever, but we _literally_ have the best stealth team in the class. Let Hagakure do her thing." Jirou reasoned.

"Right, you're right..." Midoriya admitted, already brainstorming their next move.

"So, are we going to the other side of the building or not?" Mineta asked.

"That's probably our best chance…" Midoriya said. Surely _someone_ over there figured out what they're supposed to do to earn points.

"Alright, later!" Hagakure said, taking off. Everyone followed Jirou's directions as they made it to the other side of the building, and kept moving until Jirou stopped. She was using her quirk to get a better idea of where everyone was.

"…It sounds like two groups are talking…" She said.

"Are they working together?" Mineta asked.

"Maybe? I can't make out what they're saying, but they seem to be keeping it civil, at least." Jirou said.

"Maybe we can all work together?" Mineta said hesitantly.

"I'm not getting my hopes up, but if we get closer, I'll be able to hear what they're saying." Jirou looked apprehensive, but continued down the hall. The others followed her lead as she led them closer to the others. Once they were close enough, she stopped again. Jirou hadn't used her quirk for long before she started cursing.

"What's wrong–?"

"Shh!" She closed her eyes and focused, frown deepening. "…Do you want the bad news, or worse news?"

"Guys we got trouble!" Hagakure's voice appeared out of nowhere. "Whoops, sorry." She apologized when her teammates jumped.

"You scared the shit out of me." Jirou glared, hand over her heart.

"We got bigger problems! The other two teams are making their way over here!" Hagakure sounded panicked, and for good reason.

If they didn't get a move on, they'd be sandwiched by two teams on both sides. If they ended up fighting, Midoriya's team could kiss their chances of getting any points goodbye. God knows Bakugou wouldn't give Midoriya a chance to flee. _Again_.

"We need to get out of here, _now_." Jirou said, taking off down the hallway.

The others quickly followed, and Jirou led them to an empty room. Midoriya came in last, and quickly shut the door. Midoriya opened his mouth but Jirou glared him and he shut his mouth. She needed to concentrate on her quirk to track the teams.

"…Alright, they're not coming towards us." She and the others sighed in relief.

"I'm so glad this place is a maze." Mineta added.

"I'm not! I almost didn't find you guys in time! If it wasn't for Jirou I would've gotten lost!" Hagakure complained.

Midoriya felt like an _idiot_ for not realizing that Hagakure could get lost too. If she couldn't find her way back to them her information would've been all but useless!

"What about Jirou helped you find us?" Midoriya asked.

"Jirou's quirk leaves little holes in the wall. I was keeping an eye out for them to make sure I was going the right way!" She explained.

"You're welcome. Find out anything useful?" Jirou asked, looking around the room. It was pretty empty, with just a single table in the room, plus a few chairs.

"Not much, but I saw more of the clues the others had." She sounded exasperated. "None of them had decoded it, but one team has like, _six codes_. Once they decipher it, we're _screwed!"_

"Maybe not…there's still a chance we could steal theirs before they figure it out." Midoriya added thoughtfully.

"_Uhg,_ this sucks! I'm doing _everything_ here!" Hagakure whined.

"_We _are doing all the work." Jirou corrected. "What the hell can you two even _do_?" She narrowed her eyes at Mineta and Midoriya.

"…People can't get to us if they can't move?" Mineta suggested. Everyone turned to look at Midoriya.

"…Uh. My quirk is probably the best suited to combat out of all of ours, but mostly for endurance rather than firepower. I think I'm the best chance we have if we end up stealing from someone…" Midoriya was mumbling now, trying to come up with a decent plan.

"Full offense, but I think the _invisible_ _girl_ is gonna have an easier time stealing the clues." Jirou set Hagakure's clothes on the table and sat down.

"She's the best at _stealth_, yes, but can you turn what you grab invisible?" Midoriya looked around for Hagakure. He was pretty sure her voice came from his right.

"Nope, I can't. But it's hard to hit what you can't see." Hagakure reasoned, understanding where Midoriya was going with this.

"That's why I think I'm best suited for stealing them. I'm fast and great at dodging… Actually, if we both go in together, it's guaranteed one of us will get the code, I'm sure of it." He explained his quirk a bit more.

"Yeah, I guess you have a point." Jirou conceded. "Then me and the shrimp should team up, help you two escape when shit goes down."

"I have a _name_." Mineta pouted.

"Don't care." Jirou said, playing with one of her piercings and looking bored. "We got bigger problems, though."

"Bad news or worse news, right?" Midoriya asked, face grim.

"Yeah, and it's only gonna get _worse_ if all four teams get together." Jirou frowned. "The last two teams I was spying on? They've teamed up. They seem to know how to get points too, and plan on wiping the floor with the rest of us."

"Oh man, we're so _screwed_." Mineta looked on the verge of panicking.

"Wait! We might be able to make this work to our advantage…" Midoriya said, thoughts racing.

"Let them fight each other?" Hagakure suggested.

"Exactly! Team up or not, there's no guarantee they won't betray each other!" Midoriya exclaimed. "And if all four teams start fighting…"

"We can pick off whoever wins and make them tell us how we gain points!" Mineta looked hopeful.

"Or steal their shit while they're distracted." Jirou looked thoughtful. She got up and stuck her jack into the wall. A few seconds later, she was reeling back as an explosion went off and shook the room.

"They've started fighting. _All four teams."_ Jirou said, startled.

Midoriya looked at his teammates, determined.

"_Let's go out there and win this!"_

* * *

**A/N: Hopefully Mineta won't upset many of you in this story, but as they say, don't like don't read! **

**I'd apologize for taking so long to update, but life happens, what can ya do?**

**Boy, a lot is going on here, huh? In my defense, I hadn't planned for this test to get so complicated so fast! God knows I hadn't planned for a puzzle, but here we are. At least we're getting some action soon! ****And Midnight is there too!**

**Be honest, what do you think of the students so far? I'm sure you're coming to y****our own conclusions about how/why the students are evil in this fic, some more obvious than others. Tokoyami, for example, always had me wondering**_**: **_**what would happen if Dark Shadow was the one in control?**

**And I'm sure you're all wondering what the fuck is up with (****Todoroki)**** Shouto in this AU. Why is Tsuyu wearing a surgical mask? **_**Why is Deku evil?**_

**Boy do I have so many ****_Tragic Backstories_**** for our villainous kids! :) **

**Feel free to ask me anything! I'll be sure to answer your questions so long as it doesn't spoil later things ;)**


	4. Teamwork

**Teamwork**

**So no one gets too confused, the teams are as follows:**

**Momo, Bakugou, Kirishima, and Asui.**

**Iida, Uraraka, Ojirou, and Shouto.**

**Aoyama, Ashido, Tokoyami, and Sero.**

**Kaminari, Shouji, Satou, and Kouda.**

**Midoriya, Hagakure, Jirou, and Mineta.**

* * *

This was one of the weirdest fucking days Bakugou ever had.

It sure as hell didn't start out that way. If anything, it was an unusually normal start, like any other first day of school. Never mind the fact that the school was created by some crazy villain, but whatever.

Bakugou was going to uncover what AFO and Deku were planning, he just had to bide his time.

He got up at the asscrack of dawn to make sure he could move into the dorms on time, not that he had much to unpack anyways. Bakugou ate a quick breakfast upstairs, not wanting to be social _at all, _even on a good day. He wasn't here to make friends with the villains in his class. He made sure he avoided them when he moved in, and ignored anyone who tried talking to him. Luckily, few classmates he ran into had any interest in trying, and he was more than willing to reciprocate.

As he finished breakfast, Bakugou couldn't help rereading the acceptance letter. It was a longer read than the application All For One gave him, that night he found Deku. _This_ letter was filled bullshit about the school's _"purpose"_ and _"opportunity"_ and whatever else AFO used to lure people in.

Bakugou wanted to be _absolutely_ _sure_ he hadn't missed any important detail. Coming to Yaku Academy was a _big_ risk, but if anyone could handle it, it was Bakugou Katsuki. The doubt that bubbled up in his mind was quickly crushed.

_He knew what he was doing._

He made his decision long ago, knew the risks. He didn't come to Yaku on a _whim_, and he'd make damn sure he did _everything_ he came here to do.

He was going to be the fucking _best_, and not even All For One could stop him.

A glance at the clock told him it was time to get a move on. Bakugou eyed his uniform in disgust before shoving the bowtie into a drawer. Like hell he was wearing _that _abomination. The rest of the uniform didn't look as ridiculous, just a blue blazer and black pants, both with red details, and he left the black dress shirt unbuttoned at the top. The school's crest was on a patch on the blazer, with YAKU written on it. It was too bright for his liking, but it could be worse.

He grabbed his stuff and double checked he had everything he'd need for class. Shady school or not, he wasn't about let his grades be anything less than _perfect_.

Bakugou took once last glance at the letter before leaving. He still couldn't understand why AFO would go through all the trouble of creating a _school _of all things, didn't seem worth the effort, but Bakugou wasn't going to waste what AFO gave him.

If Deku could handle being in AFO's clutches for_ who knows _how many years, then Bakugou could handle three measly years of _high school _under AFO's shadow.

This wasn't an opportunity Bakugou could pass up.

* * *

_Their homeroom teacher is a coward and the next time Bakugou sees her he's going to_ **_kill her._**

Not _only_ did that bitch fuck with his_ mind_, but she _ran away_ before she could face the _goddamn_ **_consequences._**

His palms were smoking, and he hardly had any time to rein in his temper. The normal teachers were coming in and he's not an _idiot_. He's not gonna blow his cover on the _first_ _goddamn_ _day_.

The teachers seemed to have _some_ sense of self preservation, because they left him the fuck alone, unlike_ some _people.

Bakugou could practically _feel_ the redhead next to him staring, but the idiot didn't try speaking to Bakugou again, thank fuck.

He was able to focus on what the teachers were saying, took some notes, and even calmed down a bit. For lunch he found somewhere quiet to eat, off in a secluded corner of the cafeteria. He spent lunch watching everyone, not just his classmates and Deku, but the normal people at this school. Bakugou knew it's only his class that's a part of _whatever_ AFO was planning, but he was understandably paranoid.

How can he trust _anything_ after that shit _Deku_, of all people, pulled all those months ago?

It's _stupid_, but Bakugou felt like he was being cornered all over again, trapped by AFO and Deku and that _psychotic _homeroom teacher_._

He's never been patient, but he didn't have much choice. Quirk Wellness was the last class of the day.

So Bakugou watched, and waited.

As the day drew to a close, everyone got fidgety and tense, which only seemed to get worse as they made their way towards the locker room. It didn't take long for everyone to change, but the walk from the locker rooms to the gym felt like _forever_. Bakugou didn't shove his way past everyone for once, instead lagging behind his classmates as they made their way across the massive campus. He wasn't _afraid_, but he was expecting some sort of trap. Better to let the others walk straight into it.

If he suddenly felt like he was choking on slime, well, that was probably Deku's fault. Somehow.

…But then his classmates hesitated at the gym door, and Bakugou thought _fuck it, _because he isn't a _coward_, and shoved past them.

He could handle whatever they threw at him. He'd prove it to _both_ of them.

When they entered, the gym was empty. The other students relaxed, but it immediately put Bakugou back on edge. It was just an empty gym, but Bakugou felt like he was walking into that abandoned building all over again, unseen eyes watching the trap close in around him.

But things were different this time.

He forced himself to look at Deku, afterimage of that _look_ on Deku's face. The one he wore when he pointed that gun, _right at his head, finger steady on the trigger…_

But Deku looked as unassuming as ever, gym clothes a bit too big on him, making him look small, but Bakugou knew better now.

Deku _changed_.

He was confident, like he already knew what was going to happen today, and the asshole probably _did_ know. And yet, there was more to it than that, more to Deku that he couldn't see…

…Bakugou remembered how shy Deku used to be, how he'd follow Bakugou around like a lost puppy, eager to please, _always_ tagging along. Even after they found out he was quirkless, even after Bakugou started picking on him, he was always _there_.

Always watching.

Bakugou remembered the first time they got physical, the first time he did more than shove Deku around. He had come to school the next day, after their one-sided fight, covered in bruises. Deku only hesitated for a moment before tagging along, like nothing ever happened, acting as if he didn't care that the bandages were _Bakugou's_ fault.

No matter how much Bakugou tried to make him go away, no matter how many times Deku flinched back, there was always a certain _look_ in Deku's eyes. He only ever looked at Bakugou like that.

Bakugou _hated_ that look.

And now…

_Now_, Deku doesn't have a trace of _that_ _look_ on his face anymore, and Bakugou doesn't know how he feels about that.

Deku may _look_ as eager and nauseatingly optimistic as ever, but there's a _glint_ in his eye that puts Bakugou on edge. Even when Deku tries to act all innocent, act as clueless as the rest of their classmates, like he doesn't _know_ how dangerous the people around them are…

_They've been apart for too long_, Bakugou realizes with a start.

_It's like he's looking at a stranger_. Bakugou can't even tell if it's an _act_, and he _hates_ that he can't tell which side of this Deku is the _real _Deku.

Half the time Bakugou still expects to see that wimpy little kid, expects him to cry over something stupid, wouldn't have been surprised if Deku had tried sitting with him at lunch…

But then there are these _moments_, when all Bakugou can see are Deku's cold eyes, the gun…

_All For One._

When Bakugou walked into class this morning, Deku almost looked like that little kid he remembered. Smiling, talking to some guy with glasses, like they were normal students excited about their first day of high school. Acting like they weren't _surrounded _by villains.

Deku had shot him a quick smile when he had first entered the classroom, like they were old friends seeing each other again after a long vacation, or some shit. Bakugou had glared and turned away.

He couldn't look at Deku without remembering their little _run-in_ last year, and he _hated it._ The contrast between the Deku he _knew_ as a kid and the Deku from _last year_ is unsettling in a way he doesn't understand…

He tried not to think about it too much, but he clearly wasn't doing a _great fucking job, _was he?

Bakugou was still watching Deku, while the rest of their class was looking around the gym.

He was glad he was looking at Deku, because it gave him some _warning_.

Midoriya's face lit up in realization, just as Bakugou felt something in the back of his throat.

When the class was teleported, Bakugou had managed to take half a breath before sludge choked him. The sensation, and that revolting taste were _far too familiar_, and for a moment was _terrified_ of being dropped in front of AFO again.

He managed to keep his cool, for the most part, though his heart felt like it was about to pound out of his chest, even when AFO was nowhere to be found. As he spat out the last of the slime, he found himself once again wishing that he could blow people up with his glare alone.

Unfortunately, his quirk didn't work like that and Deku remained in one piece.

When Midnight walked in, it took Bakugou a minute to realize who she was. He was never as obsessed with hero news as Deku, but Midnight's crimes weren't easy to forget. During middle school, a kid had gotten ahold of an uncensored picture of one of Midnight's victims. He'd only glanced at it, brushed off the horrifying picture, didn't think twice about it.

Now, that image was the only thing he could see, even as Deku started talking.

He refocused on their teacher when she started speaking again, and the task Midnight gave them was simple, and Bakugou was wary. Target practice was something they could've done in the gym, so why bother _teleporting_ everyone here?

Whatever the reason, there was no way Bakugou wasn't going to give his all, no matter how pointless the task seemed. A few well-angled blasts shot him up, and one more blew his target sky high. After his turn, he smirked at everyone's reactions.

Bakugou made his point. He wasn't afraid of _them_.

And AFO wasn't here to protect Deku.

There wasn't going to be a repeat of last year _ever _again. This time, _Deku_ is the one who should watch out.

When Midnight announced they'd be forming teams, he wanted to pull his goddamn hair out. Deku was _not_ an option, but Bakugou didn't even know what quirks would be compatible with his, since _half the damn class_ was being secretive and shit.

Still, Bakugou knew who his first choice was, but he wasn't the only one who made their way over to Yaoyorozu. She looked a bit overwhelmed, and while he was trying to get the wannabe villains out of his way, the annoying redhead from earlier got up in his face.

"Hey dude, team up with me!"

"Fuck off." Bakugou tried to push him away, but the guy dug in his heels.

"You're pretty intense, huh? I like that!" The redhead smiled wider.

"Do you ever shut up?!" Bakugou bit out.

"Listen, we'd make a great team! You're crazy passionate, I can tell! Our quirks are even compatible!"

He briefly recalled this guy punched a hole through his dummy's head, but Bakugou didn't know _exactly_ what his quirk was. Unfortunately, Bakugou didn't have many options...

"Alright, I'll bite, but hurry up before some loser drags the smartass away." Bakugou said as he let the Kirishima explain what his quirk was.

Not long after, the two of them had gotten Momo on their side, along with some other girl. Bakugou wasn't sure what to make of his team, didn't know if they'd end up slowing him down.

He took charge, as usual, but he was annoyed that he had to _convince_ Yaoyorozu and Asui he's the best choice for the leader. Momo only relented when he made it clear she's still the brains of the operation, even if Bakugou was the leader. Thought he hated to admit she was smarter than him, he wanted to _win_ no matter what.

Asui hesitated for too long, but then Momo explained how she saw it, and _then_ Asui accepted it. The two girls had assumed Bakugou as all brawn and no brains, a role that Kirishima said described him better. He would've picked a fight with Tsuyu over that, but they didn't have time.

When their next task started, Bakugou hadn't hesitated. As he bolted out the door, he was glad to see his teammates were keeping up with him. He could tell Yaoyoruzu was already trying to figure things out as they ran down the hall.

Bakugou's grin was all teeth, and sharper than Kirishima's. _They'd win this in no time._

When they found out this whole task was a puzzle that needed decoding, they immediately started bouncing ideas off each other. Bakugou was impressed that Momo figured it out before they gathered all the codes they needed, but he wasn't going to say that out loud. Now, they just had to figure out their next step.

_Unfortunately_, the next step meant they needed to team up with some of the other freaks in their class. Bakugou could tolerate his team for the sake of winning this stupid thing, but he did _not_ want to add any more of his psycho classmates into the mix, even if Momo _insisted_ they needed the others to get _all_ the damn points.

He hated to admit it, but he knew they had to follow Momo's plan, and damn it he _hated_ how many blows his pride had taken since stupid class started, but it would be worth it once they won.

His team _seemed_ competent enough, so maybe _they_ could work with the second team, so Bakugou could focus on more important things.

Overall, Bakugou _might_ say Momo was the least annoying of his team, if he was feeling generous. Tsuyu was creepy as hell, but she kept to herself for the most part, and was useful. Kirishima wouldn't _shut up_, but he never flinched no matter what Bakugou yelled at him, or blew up. Other _sane_ people would've turned tail and ran. It pissed him off, but he figured Kirishima had potential in a fight, he wasn't a _coward._

Speaking of fighting, Kirishima was more than ready to throw down, and Bakugou was itching to send Deku into the stratosphere, but he had no idea where the hell Deku's team was. And so, Bakugou begrudgingly agreed with Asui, that they needed to know what they were up against _before_ they charged in guns blazing. Bakugou still thought Momo was being _way_ too cautious, even while they were brainstorming. Still, she had a point.

After working out the details of their plan, and the true purpose of this stupid teamwork exercise, they headed out to look for their other classmates, when they heard some teams fighting farther down the hall.

_Time to put their plan into action._

Bakugou took off, with the rest of his team hot on his heels, and when he rounded a corner he saw the situation had already spiraled out of control. Most of the fighting seemed to be taking place in a _massive_ room, but it had started spreading out into the hallway.

If it wasn't for his quick reflexes, Bakugou would've gotten a laser to the face. Unfortunately, he ducked so quickly he fell forward and nearly smashed his head on the floor face-first. Bakugou rolled out of the way just as someone was thrown through the doorway and almost landed on him. Bakugou jumped back up and whipped his head back towards the fighting, and saw Asui's tongue already wrapped around someone.

"Woah dude! Those were some sick moves!" Kirishima exclaimed. Bakugou ignored him and stormed into the middle of the fight.

"Who the fuck almost hit me?! _You wanna die?!"_ Explosions crackled in his palm.

His loud entrance caught the attention of everyone in the room, and the fighting paused for a second. No one was sure if he was going to join the clusterfuck.

They also weren't sure if Bakugou would follow through on his death threat, rules or not.

Before things could escalate _again_, Momo stepped in. She's clever, but these were the kind of people that do _what_ _they want, when they want_. Everyone here is criminal scum, they're killers, they're _villains_, and their trust in their teammates is minimal, if there's any trust at all. Yaoyorozu's talks of camaraderie were falling on deaf ears.

With a growl, a shadow monster lunged out at her. _"Stop talking!"_ It roared.

Before it even reached her, Bakugou was sending a blast right into its shadowy face, and his blast blew back a few students who were standing too close. Bakugou wasn't going to wait and see what the rest of them did, and was already pushing Momo back out the door. Whoever Asui caught was thrown back into the room as they made their escape.

"Stun Grenade!" He quickly blinded anyone stupid enough to try and follow him. "Teamwork isn't happening, time for plan B!" Bakugou smirked.

Bakugou made sure to put some distance between them and the other teams as they ran deeper into the building, but someone still caught up to them. Bakugou tensed and prepared to attack, but in the narrow hallway it'd be difficult to avoid getting his teammates caught up in the blast. Any explosion small enough to not hurt his team may not be enough to push their pursuer back.

But Bakugou never got the chance to try, as the guy stopped as soon as Bakugou turned around. Their pursuer was a good few feet away, holding his hands up in surrender, and the rest of his team stopped. Momo looked hopeful.

"I mean you no harm, I just want to talk." Said Iida, if Bakugou remembered his name correctly. Iida looked at them all but focused on Momo. "You've figured out the code, right?" She was about to deny it, but Iida cut her off.

"At the very least, you're the closest to solving it, yes? I'm sure I can convince my teammates to help you, if you tell us what it says."

"Listen four eyes, we're not gonna tell you _shit_ unless you can _guarantee_ your teammates won't stab us in the back." Bakugou cut in.

"I'm sure we can agree to something…" Momo spoke up, already brainstorming what to do.

Iida and Momo started negotiating, and Bakugou rolled his eyes. Yaoyorozu and Iida could negotiate all they wanted, but Bakugou wasn't buying it for a second. He kept an eye on Iida, but mostly Bakugou kept watch for Iida's teammates. If this was a trap, he would make sure Iida's team never got past him.

It didn't take long for Momo and Iida to reach an agreement, and it was only _then_ that Iida's other teammates showed up. Bakugou tensed, palms sparking, but he didn't make a move, not yet. He didn't know what all their quirks were.

The _other_ guy with the red hair, the one on Iida's team, zeroed in on Bakugou. He clearly saw Bakugou as the biggest threat, but before Bakugou could say anything, the only girl on Iida's team spoke up.

"Iida! We don't have a lot of time before the other teams start looking for us, did we make a deal with them or what?" She looked nervous, and a bit singed. Bakugou wondered if that was from him or someone else's quirk.

Iida told his team what he and Momo agreed on, and as both teams started talking Bakugou tuned them out. He stopped igniting his palms, but he stayed at the ready, just in case. Iida's team was making a mistake, lowering their defenses like they were among _friends_. The redhead on Iida's team was the only one who kept his guard up, _not-so-subtly_ positioning himself between the rest of Iida's team and Bakugou. Speaking of redheads, Kirishima had moved a bit closer to Bakugou, probably prepared to shield the girls if Bakugou set off an explosion. Asui hovered around Momo far less obviously. Since she only needed her tongue to attack, she could slouch in a relaxed posture, and act like she had completely lowered her guard.

Good. At least _his_ team wasn't being reckless.

Bakugou tuned back into the conversation when Momo started telling the other team what they knew. As expected, the codes explained a bit about the exercise and how to earn points. Working together with your team would earn you points, but working with the people who weren't on your team would earn you even more points. But teamwork wasn't the only way to earn points. Capturing someone who wasn't on your team would get you a lot of points as well.

Momo admitted it was a surprise, since _villains_ would probably choose to capture their classmates instead of teaming up with them, but she theorized that perhaps capture points were added to keep things fair.

If only one or two teams decoded and learned how to earn points, then they'd probably end up attacking a team that _hadn't_ decoded the clues. The teams that hadn't figured out how points worked would default to working _with_ their team to fight off their attackers. And since the rules didn't specify what _qualified_ as a capture point, there were probably a lot of ways to "capture" someone. This would keep things fair, because the teams that didn't learn about capture points may accidently earn them when they fought.

Momo and Iida had agreed to let themselves be "captured." Momo had made some thin, elastic fabric that Iida and Momo would wrap around each other to "capture" them. They'd still be able to move their hands and arms in a fight, while their "capture" would hopefully earn both their teams capture points. To make sure no one tried double crossing the other, Iida and Momo would only tie their hands at the end of the exercise. Momo had made a timer so they wouldn't have to run back into the main room to see how much time was left, and she was courteous enough to make another timer for Iida's team.

Bakugou wasn't surprised that she left out an important detail: _Location points._

What Momo had failed to mention to Iida's team was that six rooms in this maze gave out location points. She had told everyone on Bakugou's team to try and memorize which rooms were which, because as time ran out they had to make a break for whichever rooms were closest.

Earning location points was simple: if your teammates were in the right room when time ran out, you'd get the location points. The more teammates in the room, the more points.

Even if only one or two of Bakugou's teammates made it to the right room, as long as they prevented Iida's team from entering one of those six rooms, then Iida's team would _never_ beat them.

Right now, both teams were deciding on their next course of action, and Bakugou was getting bored.

Luckily, things were about to get _exciting_.

Both teams had just moved into one of the larger rooms in this shitty maze, one that _didn't_ give location points, when not one but _two_ _teams_ charged in guns blazing.

It _immediately_ erupted into chaos. Even with a lot of room to maneuver, no one here was used to fighting with each other. Everything was going to shit _fast_.

And Bakugou was _loving it._

His explosions could be bigger in this room, and his teammates and Iida's team were smart enough to back off. Judging from his first few blasts, it seemed the room was holding up well, and wouldn't cave in if he set off one of his _bigger_ explosions. Unfortunately, he still couldn't go all out.

People with close-range quirks were constantly being pushed back by his explosions, which meant they were pushed closer to his teammates, and were threatening to overwhelm them. Bakugou _could_ go into the hallway to give his teammates some breathing room, but then his maneuverability would be shit. Not to mention it'd constrict the size of his explosions, since the hallways didn't seem to be as durable as the room they were all fighting in. He couldn't risk the hallways caving in on them.

But it didn't matter, because his team was _winning_.

When Bakugou saw an opening, he blasted someone hard enough to knock him out, which might've earned him a capture point, who knows. As he turned back to the clusterfuck of a fight, someone cried out:

_"The clues!"_

Bakugou had no idea who said it, but suddenly, papers were flying _everywhere_.

It was a mad dash to collect everything. Bakugou stood back and laughed as people rushed to get the papers as they scattered to every corner of the room. He knew _exactly_ what was happening, because Momo had planned this before she even decoded the clues. She had made fake clues, and had Bakugou destroy the real ones once she decoded them. They told Iida's team about the fakes, and Momo even made more to give to Iida's team.

Momo threw the fake clues to make everyone scramble to collect them, and boy was it _working_.

Bakugou's grin was feral as he shot towards the scattering papers. His teammates were already well out range, just as planned, and Iida's team wasn't far behind.

Paper and explosions don't mix, and Bakugou incinerated the clues in an instant. Some people were too close and got hit with his explosion, but most were able to dodge it.

"What the hell are you doing!?" Someone shouts.

Whoever yelled started sparking, and Bakugou had to launch himself back and up out of the way, as a huge wave of electricity discharged. Then Bakugou saw the electric kid's teammates grab him and run.

It seemed some were taking this as their cue make their escape, because someone from another team grew a few more arms and dragged out another teammate. More people bolted out the door, one person clutching a fistful of burnt papers. Everyone was leaving, and Bakugou knew what he had to do.

Deku wasn't a part of that clusterfuck, and Momo shouts that time is running out. If Bakugou wanted a rematch with Deku, he had to do it _now_.

Bakugou didn't check to see if his team was following him or not as he shot out the door. His team knew what they had to do to win.

Bakugou knows he doesn't _need_ to be with them to win.

And he knows _Deku_ isn't going to stay hidden forever. If all four teams were in the same place, then Deku's team couldn't be far behind. Bakugou would bet Deku was stalking one of the teams the entire time, hiding like a _coward_ and waiting for an opportunity like this.

If time was running out, it meant Deku's team had to make their move _now_.

As Bakugou chased the other teams out into the hall, it wasn't as interesting as Bakugou hoped it'd be. The few attacks that were launched back at him were easy enough to blow away. He heard his teammates yelling after him at one point, footsteps and icy air alerting Bakugou that both his team _and_ Iida's was following.

Bakugou didn't give a damn, he has his _own_ mission now.

Bakugou wasn't the first person to realize they were all running right into a trap, and it meant Deku _had_ to be close by. Purple balls lined the hallways, and as crowded as it was, with _all four teams_ in the hallway, it didn't take long for someone to trip up and get stuck.

There weren't _that many_ ball traps, and while some students were agile enough to doge and run, most started to slow down. As Bakugou blew past them, he saw a green blur shoot out of a doorway.

Deku was _fast_, and Bakugou realized he was seeing Deku's quirk in action. Deku danced around the other students with the ease and agility that only came with _experience_, swiping as many clues as he could from his ensnared classmates. He locked eyes with Bakugou, then darted back around the corner, gone as quick as he came.

Oh, like _hell_ Deku was getting away **_again._**

_"Get back here, you shitty Deku!"_ Bakugou _roared_.

Bakugou shot past as many people as he could, but with the crowd and the traps Bakugou couldn't avoid _everybody_. He slammed into someone and crashed into a wall, but with a twist and a calculated blast he got his momentum back in an instant.

He wasn't seeing any more purple, so he figured he made his way out of the stupid trap Deku's team set up. There were no more students ahead of him, and he seemed to have lost his own team at some point too. Bakugou still hadn't seen any of Deku's teammates, but it didn't matter.

Bakugou was _finally_ in the clear.

Now that he could use his quirk more freely, even in the narrow hallway, he was catching up to Deku _fast_.

And then Deku made a sharp turn, darted into a room and slammed the door shut. Bakugou almost crashed again, but twisted himself at the last second and launched himself at the room. He knocked down the door, and through the smoke he saw Deku had managed to dodge the explosion as it blew the door off its hinges. Bakugou heard a shriek as the door slammed into the wall across the room, probably Deku's other teammate. Bakugou didn't pay her any mind, she wasn't attacking.

He zeroed in on Deku, and hardly noticed Deku's teammate leave. If she wanted to be a coward he wasn't going to complain. Bakugou had _unfinished business_ to attend to.

"Kacchan-"

"Shut it, Deku!" Bakugou didn't give him a chance to respond, just launched himself forward, firing off a massive explosion. Deku may be fast, but there was only so much room to dodge. He got singed as he took cover.

The room they stumbled into wasn't too small, but it was stuffed with furniture. It was easy for Bakugou to launch himself up and over everything, but Deku had to constantly dodge and weave around the obstructions, which was slowing him down enough for them to fight on equal terms.

_Deku had nowhere to run._

Bakugou wasn't sure how long they were dancing around each other, Deku _just_ able to avoid each attack, hiding and twisting around furniture. He was fighting a losing battle, and they both knew it. Bakugou would destroy any cover Deku managed to find, and any time Deku made for the door Bakugou would send out a bigger blast to block it his path.

All the while Bakugou was yelling at him to fight, to _stop_ _running away_. Bakugou didn't care that he was getting carried away, didn't care about the strain on his arms or his own fatigue. Years' worth of pent up rage, guilt, and other annoying emotions were clouding his mind. It was a volatile concoction, and made the situation dangerous for both of them.

Bakugou couldn't focus on anything other than _Deku_, on their game of cat and mouse. Bakugou had started noticing a pattern in Deku's movements. He could guess if Deku would dodge left or right, if it was a feint or not, he could start guessing how quickly Deku could turn and twist without losing momentum.

They were both worn out, but Bakugou could still make decent sized explosions, even if it hurt, and he _would_ win this battle of attrition. Deku, on the other hand, was slowing down.

Bakugou switched from massive explosions to small ones, using his agility in the air to beat Midoriya back and away from the door, and away from what little cover that survived their fight. The charred furniture was crumbling more with each blast, nothing in the room was sturdy enough to survive multiple blast from such close range.

Soon, Deku would have nowhere to hide.

Bakugou thought Deku was an _idiot_ for trapping himself like this, did he think the furniture would provide enough cover? Did he think he's be able to slip by Bakugou _again_, and get out of the room?

It didn't matter now, and if Deku wasn't going to explain himself then _damn it_ Bakugou would just beat the answers out of him.

In a last-ditch effort, Deku switched tactics and lunged right at Bakugou. The move caught him off guard, and Deku tried to make use of those precious few seconds. As he slammed into Bakugou, Deku tried to pin him, but an explosion sent them both spiraling up into the air, and when they landed it was Bakugou that pinned Deku, slammed his face right into the floor and dug a knee into his back. Deku didn't have the energy to break free, and with his momentum completely broken, they both knew he was stuck.

Despite having won this fight, Bakugou kept his attention laser focused on Deku, just in case he tried something sneaky. Bakugou still didn't know _exactly_ how Deku's quirk worked, so keeping his attention on him seemed like the smart thing to do. He wasn't going to underestimate Deku again.

But in the end, that was Bakugou's biggest mistake.

As focused was he was on Deku, Bakugou was _completely_ unaware of his surroundings, so it was all too easy for Deku's team to sneak back into the room.

Hagakure _slammed_ into Bakugou, knocking the breath out of him while someone else grabbed one of Bakugou's arms. Bakugou felt something wrap tight around his ankles, but before anything else could happen, Bakugou used his free hand to set off a large explosion, just in time to blow away purple balls before they stuck him to the ground.

The recoil of that explosion was a _bitch_, and even Bakugou couldn't avoid getting singed. At least the explosion did its job and blew away his attackers. Bakugou's back was ground painfully against the floor, but he managed to put some distance between himself and Deku's team. The kid that set the ball traps was throw back towards Deku, and Hagakure was nowhere to be seen, but he thought he heard her slam into something. The other girl on Deku's team still had Bakugou's ankles tangled, and Jirou's quirk held strong, even if she looked a little singed.

And despite her injuries, she was still able to keep Bakugou from throwing himself back at Deku. Bakugou sent a smaller, point-blank explosion right at her, but despite feeling her grip loosen, her stupid quirk was too tangled up for _either_ of them to get out of. They were _both_ stuck and now Deku was going to get away_ again._

"You **_bitch_**_-!" _

Bakugou's yell was cut off as a buzzer sounded.

"_Tiiimes up kiddies!_ Everyone, please scrape yourselves off the floor and make you way back to the main room!" Midnight's voice crackled from speakers they couldn't see.

When Bakugou felt his feet untangle he shot up, glaring first at Jirou then at _Deku_. That grape fucker backed away as Bakugou marched over and got right up in his face. Deku stood up on wobbly legs, and met Bakugou head on.

"This isn't _over_, you understand?! You still owe me a fucking _explanation,_ Deku!" Bakugou didn't give him a chance to respond.

More pissed off than he was earlier, it took all of Bakugou's willpower to leave without firing off _another_ blast, no matter how much his arms ached. He hopped over the charred remains of some furniture, and ignored the _"Kacchan!"_ Deku sent his way as he stormed out.

"…What the fuck is _wrong_ with you two?!"

Bakugou could hear one of the girls ask as he left. Now that there wasn't a door to muffle their voices, he could hear their stupid conversation as he made his way down the hall. Bakugou tried to tune them out, but they were _loud_ and now it seemed like Deku's whole team was bitching.

Bakugou grit his teeth and picked up the pace, noticing traces of a different fight as he walked farther down the hall, and he wondered if Momo and the others were able to get the location points in time. They _better_ have, because if this day got any worse he was probably going blow his own arms off.

As he walked, Bakugou noticed just how much his arms and back were killing him. He was pretty sure he landed on his shoulder wrong as well, but his injuries were nothing compared to the bruise on his ego.

Bakugou had _finally_ gotten a hold of him, but Deku's fucking _teammates_ burst in and fucking ruined _everything_. And to make matters even _worse_, they not _only_ got the drop on _him_, Bakugou-fucking-_Katsuki_, but they _successfully freed Deku!_

It was fucking _embarrassing_.

Bakugou was going to kill them the next time they fought. _All of them._

When Bakugou made it back to the main room, all the other teams were there, battle worn but still standing. He didn't want to be _anywhere_ near his team, but when they spotted him, they came over.

"Dude, where the hell were you?" Asked Kirishima, annoyed.

"Doesn't fucking matter, it's _over_. Did you get the location points or not?" He asked Momo.

"We did." Asui answered. "Despite your uselessness."

Oh **fuck** no.

_"You wanna fucking DIE?!"_ His absolute fucking **_fury_** blew away his exhaustion, and his palms ignited. A hardened grip on his bad shoulder was the only thing that kept him from lunging at that warty frog bitch.

"Holy shit Asui, that was super manly but I'm pretty sure the _last_ thing we want is to make him _angrier_." Kirishima looked between the two, tense and ready to intervene.

"Call me Tsu." She said, oblivious or indifferent to the danger that was a pissed off Bakugou.

"I think what she _meant_ to say, was that you shouldn't have run off when we were supposed to be working _together_." Momo added, trying to diffuse the situation.

"So _what_? Did you expected me to carry you? _Your_ supposed to be the fucking genius." Bakugou turns his ire towards her. "Are you telling me you couldn't figure out what to do after I left?" Though she looked nervous, she didn't wilt under Bakugou's glare.

"It was easy enough to get to the room on time, but-" Momo was cut off by Midnight.

"_Aaand_ it looks like everyone is finally here!" She appeared out of nowhere, standing above them all on the metal catwalk. As the last of Deku's team entered, the doors slammed shut with a loud _bang_. The sudden noise made a few students jump.

"Now I can announce the winners! The team that figured _everything_ out, completed the most objectives, and got the most points was…!" She paused dramatically. "Yaoyorozu, Bakugou, Asui, and Kirishima! _Congratulations!"_ Midnight clapped.

"If you want to know what _exactly_ you got right and wrong, then you'll have to wait! I'm afraid the _detailed_ evaluations won't be ready until next class. I want to review the footage a few more times!"

They didn't know they were being _recorded_. Midnight ignores their concerned murmuring.

"Hidden cameras are _supposed_ to be hidden, after all!" She winked.

"Now, as for the team that did the second best…! Midoriya, Jirou, Hagakure, and Mineta!" She ignored the team's shock. "You may not have figured the puzzle out in time, but you _did_ complete two objectives, even if it was accidentally!" Midnight laughed.

"In third, we have Iida, Uraraka, Ojirou, and Shouto! Fourth is Aoyama, Ashido, Tokoyami, and Sero!" She smirked.

"_Unfortunately_, that means Kaminari, Shouji, Satou, and Kouda came in last!" She cackled. "Don't look so down, only _one_ of you is getting punished, remember?" Her words didn't cheer them up.

"As for the _individual_ scores, Yaoyorozu has the best _by far!_ And the worst score goes to…!" Midnight paused yet again, and the team in last place tensed. _"Kaminari!"_

Kaminari just gave a thumbs up in response, completely unaware of what was going on around him.

_What the fuck, did he fry his brain or something? _Bakugou heard someone snort, and he turned to glare at them. Kirishima still hadn't let go of his shoulder, but at least it no longer felt like he was about to tear the damn thing off.

"Unfortunately, because of the side effects of his quirk, his punishment will have to be saved for later." Midnight sighed. "Oh, and you'll receive your reward later too, Momo." She winked at Momo.

"Now, before we wrap things up here, there's _one last thing_ to do." She made her way down, a saunter in her step.

"Next class is where the _real_ training begins, so you better get your rest tonight! Stop by the nurse's office if you can't sleep off your injuries! As a homework assignment, I want you to create a rough sketch of what you want your costumes to look like." She rolled her eyes at their shocked reactions.

"Oh don't look so surprised. Do you really think all this money would be thrown at this school _without_ giving you everything you could _possibly_ need out in the real world?"

She pointed to the cylinders around her wrists, the sharp nail-like tips of her gloves, and adjusted the collar around her neck to show off a...ball gag? No, it was probably just designed to looked like one. Bakugou noticed it had holes in it, and by the way it reflected light he assumed it was made of metal. Everyone watched as she attached it to her face, and spoke.

"Look closely." Her voice was slightly muffled by it, but everyone could understand her, so it wasn't a _real_ gag. Though considering her BDSM theme going on, he wouldn't be surprised. Midnight bit down on it, hitting a button, and some pinkish gas shot out of it. The class jumped back, but the gas didn't get too close to them, instead hovering near Midnight's face until it dissipated.

"_This_," Midnight said as she unhooked it, "is a little gadget I got when I agreed to teach you. I was also given these gloves, and the little canisters on my wrists." Midnight seemed to get serious for the first time since class started.

"Black market support gear can be tricky to get, not to mention _expensive_, and you won't know the quality of what you got until you have to use it. Anytime you run into a hero, they're always going to have the advantage of costumes made to _perfectly_ compliment their quirk, and compensate for their weaknesses." She lifted her wrist and more gas shot out, reaching _much_ farther than before.

"When you design you costumes, keep this in mind. A _hero_ may only want to capture you, but if you run into another villain, they won't hesitate to kill you. Try to compensate for your weaknesses when you design your costume, and _don't_ be afraid to play dirty. A few little tricks can go a long way." Midnight's grin was all teeth.

"These toys are my _backup_. If a someone gets too close, or can blow away my gas, I'll still be able to fight. That being said, my quirk knocks people out, so my stamina in a fight is weak, and my gas can take a while to reach people who fight long range. But I have _experience_ working around my weaknesses, so don't rely _too much_ on support items either. Find your balance."

Everyone took her words to heart, if the silence was anything to go by. She seemed satisfied with their reactions, and nodded to herself.

"Alright, class dismissed!"

As she turned to leave, the slime teleported the class away.

* * *

**A/N: I originally thought about ending this chapter _before_ the four teams started fighting, but with all the recap at the beginning I figured I should just push forward! If you're still confused on how the point/puzzle system was supposed to work, feel free to ask for clarification!**


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